While in a spin class this week, my teacher (Pixie in LA at SoulCycle–she’s amazing, and that’s just one of my faves, I have them all over the country!) mentioned something that her yoga teacher said–about how we love to sit in our own dirty Bathwater. And loves, both teachers are right. The analogy was meant as a gentle reminder that we have a tendency to wallow in our stories, the bad things that happen to us, our reasons for not moving on; we all love to sit in bathwater. And while there is something amazingly comforting about sitting in bathwater, there comes a time when you have to get out.
By no means do I mean to imply that there aren’t times when wallowing isn’t needed; sometimes things are hard, it takes time to process and heal certain things. This is not about rushing yourself. This is not about forcing yourself before you’re ready. This is about not allowing yourself to sit in something that no longer serves you; be it a cycle, a relationship or job, or your bathwater. Knowing when it’s time to rinse off and move on can be hard, but when it is time, nothing feels as good.
This bathwater analogy hit home for you? It did for me. I know I have cycles to break, things I cling to, and am pretty great at sitting in things that no longer serve me. And while that is comfortable, it only hurts me. The thing is that sitting in the bathwater is tempting, we can tell ourselves that it’s good for us, that it’s cleansing. It can be. Baths are a great way to relax and bathe. However, there can be a fine line between relaxing and wallowing, washing and stewing. We can get caught up in the wallowing and stewing, thinking it’s relaxing and bathing, that we miss the part where we’re supposed to get out. In this analogy or real life, there’s always a time to get out of the tub; be it to go to bed, or to move on to the next adventure in life.
So, knowing what we know about bathwater, this might be a great week to ask ourselves: what are we really doing in the bath? Are we sitting in dirty bathwater? Is it time to rinse off and get out? What can let go of this week?
Wishing us all a week of rinsing off and amazing shoes! XO RA
