Steaming Veggies

A Lesson in Patience and Practice

Imagine you're in the kitchen, preparing a healthy meal. You've just placed a colorful variety of vegetables into the steamer. You wait for them to cook. But then, out of impatience or curiosity, you lift the lid too early, letting out the steam before the vegetables have had the chance to cook evenly. What happens? The vegetables might lose their consistency, becoming unevenly cooked and less appetizing than they could have been.

Something similar often happens in our Yoga practices. Just like vegetables, our practice needs time, patience, and the right conditions. Yet, often we find ourselves wanting to "lift the lid" too soon! In both meditation and Asana, there is a point where we feel like we've "gotten it." We think we understand the pose, or we believe we’ve reached a sufficient level of mental clarity. And just like that, we might decide it's time to move on, change things up, or even abandon the practice for the day. But here’s the catch: it’s often in this very moment when we think we’ve grasped everything there is to know, that the most profound transformation is about to occur.

When we cut our practice short, we lose the momentum we’ve built up, just like how the vegetables can lose their chance to be evenly cooked when we release the steam too soon. It’s not merely impatience; it’s something deeper. There’s often a subconscious resistance to the change that’s on the horizon. We might be afraid of the insight or transformation that’s just around the corner. This fear can manifest as restlessness, a desire to change postures, or an urge to end our meditation early.

But here’s the truth: the moments when we’re most tempted to turn away are often the moments when the most profound shifts are about to take place. It’s when we feel like we’ve had enough, that the real work begins, or we have to with full contentment and enthusiasm (of course,) start over again, remaining aware of our previous shortcoming’s.