Forgiveness

Last week I was talking to a student at the front desk, something I do everyday when I teach. Sometimes we talk about the weather. Sometimes it’s relationships. Sometimes it’s even about yoga. On this day, this student, who’s been practicing at The SweatBox for close to twelve years, said to me, “You know, I was really mad at you guys a few years ago when you kept talking about gratitude.”

This was a compelling thought in itself, but even more so because I have been thinking about the overuse of the concept of gratitude in social media, in mainstream advertising, on t-shirts. “Tell me more,” I said to the student. “Well, “ she explained, “it seemed for a while that teachers were just talking on and on about gratitude, but what about forgiveness?”

Forgiveness. The act of letting something go, of absolving, granting mercy, releasing, allowing. I got it. To forgive is to be able to make space for gratitude. If we are mired in the anger or holding on, being unforgiving, it is virtually impossible to have gratitude for what is there. The things to be grateful for are blurred by the static that comes from the energy it takes to hold on to anger or judgement or pain or whatever is in the way of forgiveness.

For the last several years, in my little village of Capitol Hill, I have watched the housing prices sky rocket. I have witnessed countless people — customers, colleagues, friends — — being displaced into neighborhoods further north and south. I have seen everyday the proliferation of people literally sleeping on the streets. The same young man sleeps in front of our studio every night. We walk by him to get to our yoga mats. When we leave class, we walk by him, wondering what we can do. I’ve called the social service agencies the city tells me to call, but alas, the man still sleeps on the sidewalk night after night. I worry about the summer ending. Where will he go? How will he stay warm?

As a result, I have been really PISSED off at the City of Seattle. I am mad. How has a city so rich and so smart allowed for our housing crisis to reach such a catastrophically shameful state? I am judgmental, frustrated, and ashamed. Last week the Seattle was electric with the buzz of Pearl Jam’s two concerts- The Home Shows. I’m not in that scene. I’m a lifelong nerd. I like quiet music. Big concerts give me anxiety. Then I started hearing about how twelve million dollars was raised from two concerts. At first I felt cynical. “Oooh. Great marketing for them.” I thought to myself. “Seattle shouldn’t be depending on concerts to house our homeless.”

And then my wise student came into my mind. “What about forgiveness?” I thought to myself. And I tried it. I made an earnest attempt to forgive the City of Seattle. I talked myself through it. Bureaucracy is a bitch. Durkan is a brand new mayor. Amazon is a megaforce. Our city is growing really fast. I let go of some of my anger and judgement and I forgave the City of Seattle. It worked. I was able to truly celebrate the gift of Pearl Jam, the gift of raising twelve million dollars to help people who need homes, rent subsidies, utility assistance, mental health care. Twelve million dollars isn’t enough, but it’s a damn good start. Thank you Pearl Jam and everyone who supported the Home Shows.

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