It's hot. It's been a long summer. It's times like these that our patience can be tested. Funny enough, there are a few things I came across this week in my online travels that were like small little messages for compassion. Maybe I was looking for them, or maybe they found me...but that's reason #165 of why I love yoga: it gives us the gift to find those small things, to have a moment of awe, and remind ourselves of life's pleasures...even in the simplest of actions (and even in 100 degree heat!).

First, on the Yoga Journal blog, Enlightened Motherhood - writer Jessica Burger Gross quoted her teacher with something I found to be so true, so real, so affirming (and so very lil omm!) "In yoga class, we practice how to practice, but at home--we practice."

WOW. And here I thought I was all amazing for being able to work up to headstand in my basement. Class as the traditional idea of "practice" (as in "how do you get to Carnegie Hall") and our real-life, up and down, hectic life being the real deal...not only empowering, but completely perspective-shifting in every way.

Then, I read lil omm teacher Kelly Newsome's blog, Higher Ground Yoga, which brought something else close to home into full-focus: "Kids have a way of reminding us what’s new and possible." As Kelly shares her experience with an adorable 4 year old, she reminds us all that children really are the eyes of the world for anyone who will allow them to show the way.

And finally, I'm reading The Happiness Project (shameless plug for this week's summer reading and seva series). In the chapter on Marriage, the author is seeking more patience and less nagging in her marriage. To get started, she sets her own marriage mantra, "There is only love." So far, it's helped me 12 times since Wednesday. The idea that the unfolded laundry, the dishes, the kids' tantrums, and the frayed nerves are all just semi-insignificant against the bigger reason it's all there? Well, the very basic and simple idea that a reminder of the love can put things in perspective isn't revolutionary, but it is so very necessary.

So as you go out into the world this weekend, remember there are inspirations and lessons all around you! Look to your family, friends, children, your dog. It's those simple pleasures that remind us what yoga - and life - is all about.