We can't blow by our despair.

As I contemplate staying indoors all weekend in order to avoid a repeat of Prince Harry's conundrum (frostbitten nipples, anyone?), I've also been mulling over about how to show up fully in this moment, where there is so much pain and injustice in the news every day.

Things pissing me off this week: The murder of Tyre Nichols, the appointment of an oil baron to head this year's UN climate talks,  the outsized profits of the fossil fuel industry this year as inflation soars, Vladimir Putin. I could go on.

Delve a little deeper, and underneath my anger lies a profound sadness. Which I can get pretty good at shoving to the side as I do all the things -- work, chauffeur my kids to and fro, zone out on Netflix, do the grocery shopping, unload the dishwasher. Again, I could go on.  

Mid-week, I was lucky enough to read an email from a beloved colleague addressed to the organization I work at, that was a call to action to not become desensitized to the gun violence and police violence against Black people that's been ravaging the news cycle.

And, I realized. Hey, that's me. I'm numb to it right now. I'm numb to a lot of things. Because sometimes it feels like too much to bear, and quite frankly, it's easier to shove it to one side.

It wasn't until I took a yoga class the next day, where I got very still, and took the time to connect to my heart, that I broke into sobbing tears. And though I was a snotty mess, connecting to my despair made me feel a lot more connected to humanity as a whole. 

I often like to say, as someone who works at an organization challenging corporate power, that we don't have the luxury of despair. That we have to get out there and fight, led by our vision of a more just world. But in that moment, on the yoga mat, I realized: We can't blow by our despair, or shrug it off. Although it doesn't help to remain in a state of despair, we can't take action to fix the problems we see in the world until we feel it in our bodies and vow to transform it into action. 

And that's what yoga can help facilitate. A connection to our hearts, our bodies, and our desires ... so that once we get off the mat, we can bring that deep felt sense of connection into our lives. 

So, in that spirit, I am offering a yoga class this Sunday at 11am. It's a fundraiser for the family of Tyre Nichols, and I would be so delighted if you'll join me. We'll spend about one hour together, to slow down, get in touch with our breath, move our bodies, open our hearts, and connect to ourselves and to each other.

All donations will help cover the costs of Tyre Nichols' family's mental health services, allow them to take time off work, and to build a memorial skate park for Tyre in honor of "his love for skating and sunsets."