Karen Watson Reeves makes the challenging Firefly Pose look like lots of fun, as evidenced by her big smile and the colorful fireworks. Photography by Fred Padilla.
By Karen Watson Reeves
When you think about July Fourth, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Independence, freedom, fireworks, cookouts, gathering with special people, gratitude, fun summer holiday? All this and more? Some dictionary definitions of freedom include the state of being at liberty rather than in confinement; exemption from external control or regulation; the power to determine action without restraint. Freedom IS the American way (at a great price), and I think we can all agree that freedom is great!
For a yoga student, freedom comes when you tap into your inner wisdom and figure out how to liberate it. When you stop looking externally for answers, direction, or approval and learn to trust your own wisdom and discernment, that’s when you discover you have the power/freedom to do anything you want in your life!
Yoga poses can give you the opportunity to search inwardly for the desire, the strength, the perseverance to achieve, to lift off, to find better alignment, or whatever it is that makes you feel as though you have mastered the pose.
I chose Firefly for the July pose with fireworks from Memorial Day in the background. It is a challenging pose, and just like fireworks require a power in those cardboard and paper containers to lift high into the sky, Firefly Pose assumes that the student finds an inner power to lift off the ground.
Thus an obvious physical benefit of Firefly is a firing up of the core to give you a lift. The quads work with the core to help support the weight of the pelvis. The hamstrings and adductor muscles are stretched, and the arms are strengthened. There is such freedom mentally to let go of distractions and focus on bringing the body into the pose.
Fireflies glow and light up summer evenings, as fireworks do on special holidays. If you watch a fireworks display on July Fourth, think about harnessing your own inner power and get ready to glow, to shine!
Have a safe and happy holiday!
Karen Watson Reeves has called Hot Springs home since 2006. Owner of The Yoga Place, at 301 Whittington Avenue, she became a registered yoga/children’s yoga teacher in 2011. She is on the Hot Springs YMCA teaching staff and is an adjunct instructor at National Park College. When not on the mat, Karen enjoys the beautiful outdoors of the National Park, especially from her bicycle. For more information about her studio and her schedule of classes, visit www.theyogaplacehs.com.
