I
loved ballet and was looking forward to the day when I could go on point...
... as so many little ballerinas do. Yet that year my life was forever changed, as I contracted paralytic polio at the age of five. I was paralyzed initially from the neck down and then regained movement on my right side.
To
cope with the pain of paralytic polio, and then childhood trauma that continued
into my adolescent years, I disconnected mind from body and my Spirit went into
hiding until it was safe to come out and play.
When
I came to my yoga mat, I discovered a whole world of healing and possibility,
and I finally moved beyond that moment in time.
 |
| Painting by Mary L. Hoffman |
On
Point
Tiny
ballerina dreaming of going on point
memories
in a twirling whirlwind
stop.
Paralyzed
muscles in a pool of dead weight
life
forever changed in the blink of an eye
dropping
to the ground without warning.
Unrolling
my yoga mat
the
seeds of transformation planted
nurtured
by the love in the sangha
the
warm breath
restores,
renews
as
life returns to a once lifeless body.
Trembling
with excitement
awakening
to hope and possibility
new
movement
unfreezing
that moment in time
in
which my life forever changed.
 |
| The author practicing yoga |
(This poem is from “Songs
of Freedom: Poems From a Healing Odyssey Volume II” which will be released in
Spring 2013)
Mary McManus poet, blogger, and yogini left her award winning career as a social worker at the Department of Veterans Affairs in May 2007 to heal her own life. During the dark night of her soul she began to express herself through poetry. Her pen became a divining rod for light, love, hope, possibility, health and wholeness. She began her journey of transformation and healing which took her to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and, in 2011, to her yoga mat. Mary holds a BS in Public Relations from Boston University and an MSW from Boston College. In January 2013 she will be a graduate of South Boston Yoga's 200 hour Body Awakening Teacher Training Program. Be sure to visit her website here and follow her inspirational blog here To hear Mary read selections from “Songs of Freedom:Poems From a Healing Odyssey” visit her youtube channel here. Mary's books of poetry are available on Amazon here.
~If you are interested in seeing your poetry appear in this blog, or submitting a poem by a woman that has inspired you, please click here for submission guidelines. I greatly look forward to hearing from you!~
I love the line you drew between your childhood self leaving ballet and your adult self picking up yoga, as if -within the loving sangha that supported you- you were learning how to dance a whole new dance! I like this theme you often work within, Mary: of a time-space continuum that connects your past with your present, and points you into a bright future! Thank you for sharing yet another one of your inspiring poems with us.
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