Day 9 - Two Worlds Colliding

Today I noticed the aftermath of my inappropriate meal choice from Chili’s yesterday making its way out of my body. My first bowel movement of the day was not pleasing. Although I made sure to take my triphala supplements before bed last night to ensure a detox of the Chili’s experience, my BM wasn’t exactly a smooth move. OK, I got it. Lesson learned.

I was thankful for the experience from the standpoint that I have to dance in a show tonight and the hostess is providing dinner for the entertainers. Since I wasn’t sure what types of foods I could expect I made sure to bring my churna (spice blend), my personal herbal tea blend and some “Stomach Ease” tea just in case. My new motto for eating out will be, “Churna. Don’t leave home with out it.”

I performed for a Latina girl’s 15th birthday party tonight – complete with a DJ and 200 guests. In short, lots of teenagers and loud thumping music. It was also cold tonight and my costumes aren’t exactly warm and wooly. So I had to prepare myself for an evening that could potentially cause imbalance.

I spent my morning doing my usual hot tea, yoga, meditation and daily Ayurvedic practices. My afternoon eating warming foods (you can never go wrong with immune soup and kitchari) and taking time to relax. I was even lucky enough to have my husband massage my neck and shoulders so my muscles would be loose and ready for action.

Before I left, I gave myself another self massage with my personal blend body oil. This practice would keep me grounded and seal my skin with a protective layer, like an aromatic body armor.

When I arrived I was in a great mood and ready for anything. I chose wisely from the foods offered at the buffet table, doused everything in churna and only drank the herbal tea I brought with me. I was feeling good until halfway through the show when things started getting a little crazy. The energy was up, the crowd was lively, the room was chilly and the show didn’t flow quite as smoothly as I had hoped. The lack of flow got my anxiety up a bit.

Once the show was over I sat down to enjoy my herbal tea while watching my friends, the break dancers, put on a little performance. Before long I began to experience a headache from the pounding of the bass and the energy of the wild teenagers, who by this time, were totally enthralled with the break dancers and wanting to bust a move themselves. I found myself sneaking off to the dressing room for refuge.

When you commit yourself to peaceful, balanced living and are thrown into a wild nightclub-like atmosphere, it feels like two worlds colliding. When I left the party and walked out to my car I could literally feel more and more peace the further I got from the building. The thumping of the bass seemed to alter the cadence of my heartbeat. It’s just an unnatural environment and not exactly Ayurvedic. Oh well, the show must go on.

I was more than happy to drive home to find my zen-like state again. My headache subsided when I arrived home and I kept that momentum of peace going by giving myself another massage before bed.

I noticed that by the time my head hit the pillow I was relaxed and comfortable. Usually when I return home from a gig I have trouble getting to sleep, my mind keeps spinning and going over the different choreographies - what was good and what went wrong. This time I slipped into a restful sleep. I mentally patted myself on the back for taking precautions to keep myself in check in spite of the not so zen-like environment I just performed in.