Running Away in Search of Enlightenment

So why did I leave my recuperating husband all alone while I took off to Atlanta last weekend? I'm not even sure where to begin . . .

A couple of months ago a complete stranger contacted me through my YogaDudes blog to tell me that she would like to give a free book to my YogaDudes customers. I thought, "Great, I love to offer special deals to my customers." So without giving it a second thought I took her verbiage about the book and reprinted it in my blog. To be honest with you, I didn't even bother to actually read the excerpt from the book before I posted it. I was in a frantic rush, as I always am. When the woman told me that she also wanted to send me a free copy, I didn't give that another thought either, and since I like free things (who doesn't?) I quickly shot her my mailing address and put the entire thing out of my mind.

The day before we were leaving on our vacation to Moab I was thrilled to find the free book in my mailbox. As usual, I had not had time to really prepare for the trip and I didn't get myself any reading material for the plane ride. Finally, I read the back of the book, which by the way, is called "Midnights with a Mystic" by Cheryl Simone. I have to admit, it sounded very interesting and was right up my alley. Off to the airport we went the next morning.

Within a couple of hours my hair was sticking up on my arms. I just felt this erie feeling that I was MEANT to have this book in my hand. I completely related to everything the author said and felt like I shared her every feeling and thought. The real kicker came when she explained how early in her life she unexpectedly received a book in the mail. She never did find out who sent the book, but she read it. The book was "Autobiography of a Yogi" which is an ancient text written by the first yogi that brought yoga to Western Civilization. This is like the yoga bible for most yoga instructors. A very deep and hard-to-read book and it had an influence on the rest of her life. I couldn't help but marvel at the fact that the book that I was holding in my hands was also sent to me (by a stranger) as if it was destined to find me.

So I read and read and by the time we got to Utah I just couldn't shut up. I wanted to tell Karlo about every single thing that I read so far. It's hard for me to even describe this, but I was so excited. It was like I just found out about a secret, or I found a treasure chest that was about to change my life. The more I told Karlo, the more interested he got. I couldn't believe how completely open to all of this he was.

On our last day in Salt Lake City, you may remember my terrible stomach cramps from that stupid Jeep ride. Well, there really wasn't all that much to do in Salt Lake, we had the entire day to kill, and we weren't in a rush to check out of the hotel. We had free wifi and my laptop so I started to research some references in this book. The book is all about a man named Sadhguru (he's the Mystic). I googled him, his foundation (Isha Foundation) and his method of yoga (Isha yoga) and I found all sorts of fascinating things. There was even a 30 minute video (Caution: the links will take you away from this blog. Please finish reading then come back and click on the links.) that explains everything. I can't imagine a single other time in our lives when Karlo and I would have had the time or patience to sit and watch this video. But the timing was perfect. We sat quietly and watched it. And by the time it was done, that was it. I knew I found the answer to all my life's problems. This man could teach me how to find my inner peace. How to finally enjoy my life. How to let go of all the external influences that have such a effect on my every emotion.

The reason why I related to the author of that book so much was because she described most of her life as 'perfect.' She was happily married, had a successful business, lived in a beautiful home, had plenty of money, etc. There were literally no real problems in her life, but yet she was constantly searching for more, more, more. She never truly felt happy and just had this aching feeling that there had to be more in life. Boy did that touch a nerve with me. Sometimes I stop and think, "Can my life get any better? What the hell is wrong with me that I'm not 250% grateful every single day for the life I have? What is it that I'm looking for?" In my previous marriage I thought it was just lack of passion in my relationship. I had it all, but I wanted more. Now I have Karlo and everything I can possibly want. What is it that I'm looking for NOW? Well, I was looking for was Sadhguru and I finally found him!

At the Salt Lake airport Karlo's Kindle had a melt down and he wasn't able to buy a new book for the ride home. I took this as an opportunity. Although I was dying to get back to reading my book, I offered it to Karlo to read. I sat looking over his shoulder for hours on end as he read half the book. By the time we got home he was sold. We talked about what we read so far and I could already see a change in both of us. We continued to read the book and we continued to change . . . for the better.

We immediately signed up for Inner Engineering which is an online course consisting of 7 one and half hour lectures by Sadhguru. After every single class we can both feel the changes happening. We were calmer, more patient, kinder . . . the list goes on. It was impossible to not think about Sadhguru and his teachings in every aspect of life. It was just a completely refreshing feeling. At the end of this online course you are invited to go to a live event to learn a very sacred meditation ritual that is completely life changing. It's impossible for me to try to explain this so if you are interested go to this link and watch some of the videos. There was no doubt that I wanted to experience this too. These events happen a few times a year all over the country, but Sadhguru himself only teaches a couple and there was no guarantees he was going to be back in this country again this year. This was my ONE CHANCE to be in his presence and learn directly from the master and I just couldn't pass it up.

This is getting really long and I haven't really explained my experience, not that I really can. I will likely be writing more about this subject on my YogaDudes blog, so if you're interested in hearing more on this subject I invite you to drop in over there. And if you are personal friend of mine reading this (and even if you're not), I strongly encourage you to click below and buy the book! You have about 7 bucks to lose and a lifetime of joy and happiness to gain.