The author realizes through reading the dictionary definition of "hobby" that yoga, which has always been part of her life, qualifies as her hobby. Yoga helps ease her anxiety and brings balance, especially during stressful times. Her "inner yoga bird" reminds her to return to yoga through difficult periods. She finds relief from physical pain through Yin Yoga classes, and is grateful to have found this rewarding hobby.

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Discovering My Hobby
I have never really thought of myself having a particular hobby. When I think of the
different types of hobbies that people take up, I think of baseball card or comic book
collections, sewing, knitting, painting, and anything artistic. When asked to write a
reflection on the hobby of my choice, I felt a little confused by whether or not I had a
hobby. The first place I went to was the internet to look up the definition of the word
hobby. Merriam-Webster’s
A hobby is “a pursuit outside one’s regular
occupation engaged in especially for
relaxation.”
Merriam-Webster Dictionary
dictionary defines the word hobby
as “a pursuit outside one’s regular
occupation engaged in especially
for relaxation.” I immediately had
an “aha moment” after reading the meaning of the word and realized that I do have
hobbies! All this time I have been entertaining one of my leisure activities, not being
aware that it is a hobby.
Yoga in My Life
Yoga has always been a part of my life in one way or another. There have been plenty of
breaks where it has not been in my life, but I always seem to come back to it, especially
during times of high stress and when I crave balance with-in myself. My Mother
practiced yoga to some degree when she was pregnant with me. Practicing and
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developing breath work can help assist during labor, where deep rhythmic
breathing is very important during the delivery process. I also remember
doing yoga when I was a child. I had found an illustrated book of different yoga
poses, which at the time I did not realize that the drawings were actually part of a yoga
series. I remember how much more flexible I was back then and the poses (asana) came
naturally to me. However, somewhere between childhood and early adulthood, my inner
YOGA HELPED
EASE MY
ANXIETY
yoga bird flew away for a long while and eventually migrated back
to me when I experienced a difficult time around the age of 25. The
little yoga bird landed on my shoulder and tweeted in my ear
telling me to try yoga to see if it would help with the deep anxiety I was experiencing. I
started practicing yoga using an at home DVD and I soon began to notice a difference in
how my body was feeling. It also helped ease some of the anxiety. Learning how to
connect my breath with movement and synchronizing both to create space and better
circulation throughout my body had a very positive impact. I was consistent with my
yoga practice for about a year or so until my yoga bird flew away again.
My Inner Yoga Bird
After much resistance, the little bird found me again about four months ago when I was
in desperate need for balance and physical pain relief. For about eight months prior,
that little birdy sang it’s little yoga tune in the back of my head, singing and
gently reminding me to try a class called Yin Yoga. Yin Yoga is a type of
restorative yoga that involves gentle, yet deep stretching using breath
work to help release tension, oxygenate the blood flow, and lubricate
the joints. I finally surrendered to the resistance that was holding me
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back from attending the class. It has been the greatest gift I have given
myself in a long time. I found being in class with an experienced yoga guide
was a supportive and safe environment to work on restoring my energy and help
release some of the pain and tension that my body has been holding onto. I am full of
gratitude that I am able to participate in this deeply rewarding hobby. Even if my inner
yoga bird flies away again, I know it will always come back when the season calls for it.
For now, I will continue to practice yoga and make this hobby a priority in my life.
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Improvements Made to Document
Added Graphic/Clip Art to Heading
Added Subtitles
Added Page Border
Changed Theme, Fonts, and Colors
 Theme: Slice
 Font: Georgia
 Color: Blue Green
Inserted text box on page 1 with quote from writing
Inserted text box on page 2
Inserted Clip Art on pages 2 and 3
Adjusted Spacing between sub-headings and paragraphs
Removed the indents
Defined new bullet for the list of improvements
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