December 2025

Looking for the Good: Continuing Our Journey with Grief

Dear Yogis/Yoginis ,

Following up on last month's email on grief, I wanted to continue our conversation about navigating these challenging times.. As grief continues to accompany us in our lives, let's keep finding tools that help us accept the present instead of searching for quick solutions. Grief doesn't disappear overnight. It evolves—pain morphing into different expressions of sorrow, gradually transforming into precious lessons.

As we nurture ourselves in ways we know work for us, I encourage you all to do just that: know yourself and take care of your needs. Not the ones we use to numb ourselves or escape painful realities—not the ones that keep us ignorant and avoidant. If your yoga practice is truly a spiritual practice using the body and mind as entry points, then isn't it a priority to get in touch with who we really are beneath the many layers of conditioning, roles, and costumes we've worn?

So what to do?

These aren't grand gestures or hours of meditation—they're small shifts in awareness that accumulate into a completely different way of moving through your day.

Practice "just being." When walking, eating, gardening, emptying the trash—focus entirely on just that activity. When you walk, just walk. When you eat, just eat. This prevents the mind from wandering into self-centered thoughts about the past or the future or how things "should" be.

Observe self-talk and comparison. Notice how often your mind compares you to others—better than, worse than—or tags you with labels. "I am stressed," "I am good," "I am..." always followed by some adjective. Acknowledge these thoughts simply as mental events, not ultimate truths that get you fixed in place.

Question ownership. When anger or sadness or joy arises, question the idea of "I." Instead of "I am angry," try telling yourself, "Anger is moving through me." Remove the ownership of the emotion and let it move through. Emotions are simply Energy in Motion—allow them to do just that.

Focus on others. Seva. Do good and look for the good.

Some days you'll remember these tools, other days you'll forget completely. That's okay. This is practice, not perfection. Each time you remember to pause, to notice, to let go—that's a victory. Over time, these small practices don't make the challenges disappear, but they do make us more spacious—able to hold difficulty without being crushed by it, able to experience joy without grasping at it.

Life is for living. How helpful are we if we sink into the pits of the abyss? Every day is filled with an abundance of little things to be grateful for—the warmth of morning tea, a stranger's smile, the way sunlight filters through leaves, a spontaneous laugh with a friend, the comfort of your own breath returning to you on your mat. Little things that bring a smile to your face, or your own smile bringing joy to someone else.

As we move into the holiday season with Christmas approaching, these practices become even more essential. The holidays can amplify both joy and grief, bringing old wounds to the surface alongside moments of connection and beauty. Remember to be gentle with yourself. Look for the good—it is everywhere, even in the tender, bittersweet moments.

And remember, we're in this together. Your practice supports mine, mine supports yours. When one of us remembers to look for the good, it creates a ripple.

Pema Chödrön, one of my favorite Buddhist teachers who knows how to simplify complex concepts, often said that sadness, grief, and challenges are like thick grey clouds in the sky. All you need to do is poke little holes in those clouds so brightness and light can shine down upon you.

So go ahead. Look for the good. Poke little holes in that grey sky while thanking the grey sky for its many lessons.

With love and light,

Evelyne