[I]f you will be a part of the best of us, and live and laugh and be ashamed with us, then you will be content to be helped. You must give your burden up to someone else, and you must carry someone else's burden.... I'm sure this is a law of the universe, and not to give up your [burden] is as much to rebel as not to carry someone else's. You'll find it quite easy if you let yourself do it.

~from Charles Williams' novel, Descent Into Hell

It is very difficult to ask for help, even when we know a friend is willing to lend a hand. When we effort to carry struggles all by ourselves, this tension manifests itself in the physical body, particularly in the shoulders, hips, and face. Physical tension begets mental tension, which then produces physical tension in a self-perpetuating negative loop. As Spring transitions into Summer, we will practice surrendering our anxieties to the support that waits to embrace them. Established in the inner strength we discover through practice, we will soften areas of resistance and experience our boundless capacity to give and to receive.

Monday: Standing poses to extend awareness and acknowledgement to areas of resistance

Tuesday: Expansion through heart and hip opening
Wednesday: Eliminating negativity through twists and inversions

Thursday: Blossoming beyond our comfort zone in forward folds
Friday: Joyful surrender in binds and arm balances