Coming Home

What a day.

It began with a beautiful early morning practice, then some taking care of my children, and then off I went to the Dane County Jail to teach yoga to the women in minimum there.

Talk about a grounding experience. Wow.

And when I left, I felt lucky. Because I was the only one, of the six of us in that jail recreation room, who actually had the opportunity to feel the ground, the actual earth, beneath my feet today.

One of the places my feet took me was a core class, where this was appropriately one of the songs played:

I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that

We all need that. And while I get that we have laws for a reason, and I get that we sometimes need to protect people from hurting themselves and/or others. But the way that we do it is so far from anything that might help empower these people to make better choices the next time around.

Today I learned that the women are not allowed to stand up in the pod (dorm area). They have to be sitting or laying down. One said she does her squats in the shower because it's the only place she's allowed to stand. Really? Talk about not being able to feel the ground beneath your feet, even if it is the floor of the jail. What an unfortunate, fear-based policy.

Anyway, besides the humbling and heart-opening experience of being present to those women today, I also found out my part time job at the University is morphing to full time this month (yay!), and had the incredible experience of biking up my driveway and being greeted by my 16 year old son, standing in the window, making dinner.

I am so, so blessed.

And so glad to be coming home in all these many ways:

I need that home, I'm coming home, I'm coming home
Cause it's life that I've been living in my home
Home, I'm coming home, I'm coming home
Cause I'm tired of being out here on my own
I'm coming home, oh yeah yeah yeah
I'm coming home, oh yeah
All of this time I've been living it up
All that's is left is rubble and dust
Oh oh, I'm coming home

I know if I can find my own way back
There's a life I always knew but never had
I'm tired of fighting things that I can't change
Letting me go so I can finally find my place

I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that
Ground beneath my feet to feel that
Ground beneath my feet
I need that

We all do. Every single one of us. Not just those us fortunate enough to either have the resources to make good choices, the resources to not get caught, or the resources to avoid doing time if we are caught.

Imma see what I can do about changing some of these inhumane policies...