Growth: Happy Birthday Humble Haven!
A Mission Moment share by Humble Haven’s Founder, Suzanne Burns
Growth. I heard someone say recently that you can never be ready for it because when we grow, we’re becoming a brand-new person.
Humble Haven Yoga celebrates our 9-year anniversary on January 6 and when I reflect on these past years, I can agree that I wasn’t ready for all that they would hold.
Alongside the community and physical space that is Humble Haven, I can say I’ve experienced a great deal of my own personal growth. I was 29 when I signed the first studio lease on 13th Street. I’m so thankful for the naivety of my younger self that contributed to the pure openness that spun me into an evolution of my vision, a deepening of my personal and professional purpose, and understanding of who I am to become.
Humble Haven’s and my own growth wouldn’t be possible without each person that has shown up to inquire or become a loyal and dedicated member of the community.
I believe that being in relationship with others is like standing in front of a mirror. Whether a relationship is deep or distant and passing, how we receive another’s qualities is often a reflection of how we receive ourselves. Sometimes that reflection can connect us to something familiar; whether that’s beautiful and warm or painful and raw. I think this is what can make practicing yoga in community so powerful and supportive when it comes to our personal growth.
Yoga teaches us greater self-awareness while simultaneously dissolving the veil that can exist between ourselves and other living beings around us. When we immerse in a consistent practice and surround ourselves by other people, we have a chance to learn about who we are now, who we are becoming, and what needs to be shed to keep taking steps forward.
My own and Humble Haven’s growth over the last 9 years has not been linear or without hardship and loss. It has also not been without great joy and personal triumph. I can honestly say I wouldn’t change a single part about it. It is my sincerest hope that whether you’ve been with us all 9, have come and moved on, or are just joining this year, that you too have experienced growth and that in some way we have or can support you in it.
I am both ready and unready for what the years ahead hold. Thank you, I love you and wouldn’t want to be doing this without you.
-Suzanne