Maldon, Essex, England: June 2010

Before leaving for the UK, I found three yoga studios I planned to visit. Because I would be in a more remote area, I would need to be driven to each. "This will be fine. I have two weeks. My husband will take me."
In the event you are wondering why I might need a driver, the car we had was a company car of my husband's and he was authorized to drive, not I. Trains don't run in Maldon, either. Very small outskirts town.
So, my family of six arrives at the little two bedroom house we will be staying at. At our home in Brookfield, each child has their own bedroom and a sense of personal space, our table seats eight and there are several places in the house where you could comfortably break into yoga poses. Not at this house. I fondly call it, "the doll house". One issue. We are not dolls. To say that we had a rougher transition that I expected would be putting it conservatively.
On top this transition, there was an unusual heat wave sweeping England. Our doll house had no a/c, no fans, and no screens on the windows. This put my children in direct conflict with some of their fears: security (though I doubt anyone in Maldon would care enough to break into our house), and bugs. So, when I would open a window to maintain my own peace of mind ( I need to be cool, you see), they would close it. This, to say the least, was maddening.
I needed yoga. I found about 10 square feet of space (insufficient) at the top of the stairs to work on my Warrior III and Half Moon. After nearly falling down the stairs on a few occasions, I decided to abandon my efforts, instead sticking to meditation and sitting poses. I was becoming increasingly frustrated. My plans to visit yoga studios had all fallen through. On one occasion, my husband wasn't feeling well. On another, the teacher cancelled to attend a concert. And the last class I planned got bumped because it was double booked  with a business dinner that I needed to accompany my husband to.
"Where is the yoga in my trip?" I wondered.  Where is it? This isn't what I had planned!
What I had planned. There it was, staring me in the face. It wasn't what I had planned. Here was my lesson. If I truly believe that God and the Universe will bring me exactly what I need exactly when I need it, then I ought to take another, different look at why this is happening. It isn't about what I expected. It is about what IS. How can I find the yoga, find the peace, find the meaning in what I have just been given?
My beloved teacher, Dr. Jan Jensen, taught me that there is value in every experience. Find the value. See the beauty. Discover the lesson. Just BREATHE...and you will see.
So, I started to breathe. And calm down. Even though I had zero privacy (and next to zero space), I decided to get creative. I began to meditate in the car on the way to London. Yes, I had to block out the kids and the radio, but I did it. And it helped. A lot. I pushed aside the air mattresses in the tiny living room and moved into Warrior III. I took my children on lots of walks.
I committed myself to looking for the yoga, the beauty of God's Universe in everything I experienced. When I visited the Tate Modern in London, I happened upon a humble, yet glorious bronze statue of an avenger. From my perspective, he was holding a fierce and flowing Warrior III pose with a stupendous sword on his back. I tell my students to "be the Warrior". This guy certainly was doing just that.
The people of Maldon, Essex were very calm, relaxed and friendly I noticed. For me, there is a union in that. We are unable to connect our body, mind and soul if we are anxious and tense; if there is fear present. These people seemed joyful and open hearted to me. There is yoga, there is peace in that I was certain.
One Saturday in London, we were walking along the Thames and happened upon a merry band of street performers. They seemed to be a rag-tag dance troupe of sorts. Then they started dancing. Their bodies were muscular and strong, capable and graceful. It was obvious they practiced often and took good care of their bodies; their greatest instruments. The crowd whooped and cheered! Everyone was joyous as the dance troupe shared their talents with us, total strangers from every country imaginable. There is yoga, there is peace in this, I was certain. Slowly, I was figuring out how to step away from my expectations and accept what is. What truly is and how to be fervently grateful for it.