![\"namaste\"](\"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/namaste.jpg\")
Namaste!<\/p>\nMy mother-in-law would often say, \u201canything worth doing is worth doing well.\u201d<\/p>\n
I agree with her completely, and in this expression, I can sense all the love she infused into everything she did. But in some ways, this sentence also brings me back to my childhood when, for instance, I would get 80% on a tough exam and be told, \u201cyou can do better next time.\u201d <\/p>\n
Perfectionism is communicated to us in a variety of ways. Today, given my yoga experience, I prefer to say, \u201canything that requires my attention also requires my joy.\u201d I\u2019m sure my mother-in-law would have loved this expression too!<\/p>\n
Why talk about this? Because the quest for perfection is an ever-present topic among children, and I\u2019ve noticed it in my yoga classes. During these classes, we often hear \u201cListen to your body!\u201d \u201cRespect your limits!\u201d The same is true in children\u2019s yoga. At first, they don\u2019t quite understand what this means; but after a while, they begin to accept that they might need to adapt a posture, be more patient with themselves, or work on their perseverance (tapas) which, combined, we call the \u201cjoyful effort\u201d. <\/p>\n
The other day, my nine-year-old daughter declared, with a very serious expression, that she had learned an important lesson. She said \u201cSometimes, we worry too much about doing things right, and the result isn\u2019t necessarily great. At other times, we get better results when we don\u2019t try as hard!\u201d My jaw dropped! I asked her how she came to such a powerful realization. She replied, \u201cBefore leaving on my walk with Daddy, I quickly put my hair up in a bun, without thinking about it too much. It was the nicest bun I\u2019ve ever made. But then, at other times when I try to do it perfectly, it never turns out right!\u201d<\/p>\n
Like the \u201clesson\u201d my daughter learned, I wanted to talk about this topic because the holidays can be a fitting time to pause and reflect on things as a family. I like the idea of \u201cgrowing together\u201d! Two aspects of perfectionism can be explained to children: \u201cpositive\u201d perfectionism, which brings us pleasure and pride throughout the process, and \u201cnegative\u201d perfectionism, which is unpleasant, dissatisfying, and prevents us from moving on. <\/p>\n
To further develop this idea, we can establish a link with the philosophy of yoga, and specifically Bramacharya, which means \u201cmoderation\u201d. According to the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, living in moderation brings tremendous inner energy; furthermore, \u201cit is excess and extremes which cause us to fall out of balance and saps our energy.\u201d Have you ever thought about this? <\/p>\n
While it is perfectly fine to want to do things properly, it\u2019s better to aim for \u201cbalanced\u201d perfection, without attachment to outcomes. We will end up feeling lighter, in better harmony with ourselves, better able to overcome failure, more relaxed, and more joyful! Although it might be easy to say, it isn\u2019t easy to do\u2026 but ultimately, isn\u2019t this what we want for ourselves and for our children?<\/p>\n
So, dear readers, I challenge you to play along. Take advantage of this time to practice \u201cimperfect perfection\u201d or maybe \u201cperfect imperfection\u201d with your kids! And why not play at reinventing some yoga postures\u2026 in the snow? Have fun with it!<\/p>\n
Merry Christmas, and happy holidays everyone!<\/p>\n
Namaste!<\/p>\n
![\"Valesca](\"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/valesca.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
To contact me: yogavalesca@gmail.com<\/a> My mother-in-law would often say, \u201canything worth doing is worth doing well.\u201d I agree with her completely, and in this expression, I can sense all the love she infused into…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1512,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1575"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1576,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1575\/revisions\/1576"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1512"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogatribes.blog\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nhttps:\/\/apprendreagrandir.ca\/<\/a>
\nMe, at a glance: a journalist by training, a Brazilian by birth and adopted Quebecer, mother to two lovely jewels, the spouse of a pretty great guy, and a yoga instructor for children. Dig a little deeper, and you\u2019ll discover that I\u2019m passionate about the welfare of children (they\u2019re the future of our planet!) and am a real people person. I love to learn, I love nature, music, the arts\u2026 in short, I love life and everything that\u2019s authentic. I look forward to sharing yoga practice with you and\/or your children!! Certified by Yoga Alliance and the F\u00e9d\u00e9ration francophone de yoga.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"