Wild Horses

As some of you may know, in addition to being a yoga teacher, I'm also a cyclist.  Not the kind of cyclist that rides 20 minutes to get ice cream, although I've done that, the kind that rides 100km or more in search of myself, maybe?

Baldy Mountain is east of Oliver, BC.  In bike terms, it's a Category 1 climb.  In non-bike terms, it's bloody hard.  My bike Samantha and I had stopped on the side of the road.  Again.  I'd been climbing this mountain for over an hour and I had no idea when I would reach the top or if there even was a top.  I was alone on an empty road except for the periodic forestry truck whipping by.  A sweltering 30+ degree heat.  Scorching payment.  And my thoughts."Don't cry.  Don't cry.  Whatever you do, don't cry."My new mantra.I couldn't let those truckers see me cry.  I'd straighten up as soon as I saw a truck coming and pretend to fix my shirt or take a swig from my water bottle.  Then I'd go back to trying not to cry.I texted him:  "I've stopped. Again."No response."I can't do this.  I'm turning around," I said.Finally came a text, "You're almost there, you can do it.  Don't stop, there are wild horses around the last corner."Wild horses?I dried my eyes and got back on my bike and when I crested the next hill I saw them.  Beautiful wild horses and a mare trotting along next to the highway.  I finally cried.(See photo: Wild horses and me at the top of Mount Baldy, BC in August 2013.)Lesson No. 1: Mantra, or the silent (or not) repetition of a phrase or word, can help prevent you from coming undone.  Or to help you save face.  Or stay focused.Lesson No. 2: Our bodies can do a lot more than we think they can, it's our spirit that usually breaks first.The sport of cycling isn't easy.  It isn't supposed to be. As they say, it never gets easier, you just go faster.  Sometimes the mental and physical suffering is beyond what you thought you could take but you keep pedaling anyway.  You learn that your limits are a long way past where you thought they were and you learn that it's the struggle that makes your successes so much sweeter.Like discovering wild horses just over the next hill.I've often thought of cycling as a metaphor for life.  In your yoga practice, on a bike or in life, anyone can peddle for twenty minutes to go get ice cream but if you really want to accomplish something it takes effort and sometimes pain and suffering.  Along the way you might want to cry.  You may want to quit and turn around but if you're always turning around, you'll never reach the top.You'll never see the wild horses.If you'd like help to get in touch with your intuition use this 'Intuitive Meditation'.  If you want to learn more about how to mediate you can also learn with me.Here's to never giving up,Kim