On December 30, 2014, the spirit lead me to cut off all my hair. I say the spirit because this is not something I would have done at my own will. I have had a decent length of hair my entire life, and it something that I have inherited from my father.
All of my life I have hid behind my hair. It was a way for me to cover up all of the flaws, so no one would notice them. Instead of people zeroing in on my flaws, they could just comment on my hair.
But oh when I cut my hair off, I became exposed. Every insecurity I have surfaced in a very strong way. I became depressed instantly, and I didn't know how to deal with the emotions. Until my Spelman Sister, Jocelyn, reminded me that this is a major time of transition for me. I am preparing for marriage, to my love thang. Transitioning from Maryland to New Jersey. Transitioning into becoming a step-mommy. Transitioning into a new job, somewhere. Transitioning from a doctoral student to a doctoral candidate. Transitioning into becoming a yoga instructor. That's a lot of transitions in a year! But growth will take place, if I don't hinder the transitions.
Transitions are a major component of yoga practice. You transition from one pose to the next. Some are more smoother than others. For example, when I transition from tripod headstand to lotus, it takes a while.
Transitions take time, but the more you practice them and engage with them, you become stronger. Any transition in an inversion builds your core strength, simply put you grow stronger.
I know that something as simple as cutting my hair will make me stronger. I will embrace my insecurities. I will begin to understand the true meaning of loving myself beyond external factors. When my hair grows back, it won't be something that I don't have to use to hide who I really am. I will be stronger.
If you are experiencing a transition in your life, or working on different transitions in your yoga practice, embrace it. Sometimes the transitions will be smooth, shaky, or just down right difficult. But think of how much you will grow when you get to the next pose, place, goal, etc. You will be stronger than you were before. Namaste.
Indeed! Reminds me of the Word, Ecclesiastes..where it speaks to the seasons of life. There is a time for everything. It's inevitable that we experience transitions in life...they are difficult and uncomfortable but they bring growth as you suggested. Thanks for your transparency through this process sis!!
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