Wanna know what drives me batty??? LABELS!!!

Here are some things I often hear:

Why do you wear so much black? How can you be a yoga teacher and wear so much black? Are you unhappy?

You don’t eat meat or dairy? Are you healthy? Where do you get your protein?

You’re how old and you’re not married and you don’t have kids? Aren’t you worried your window might be closing?

Why do we do this to ourselves and others?Why does wearing black mean that I’m sad and depressed and not capable of teaching yoga? Why does the vegan lifestyle rub so many people the wrong way? Isn’t it my choice how I live my life? I never pressure people to stop eating meat, or to change their lifestyle to appease me. By the way, I’m extremely healthy, if you were wondering. Why as women, and men I suppose, and as a society do we put so much pressure and time restraints on women/men to get married and have kids. They tell us to hurry up, to make decisions that the world thinks we should make for ourselves. Then we end up miserable because we didn’t wait for the right person or the right time “for us” to start a family. When we wait, when we follow our heart, when we beat to our own drum we’ll know when the time is right.

Take this photo shoot for instance, I strapped on a pair of heels and took some yoga photos at Murphy’s Ranch, wearing mostly black and surrounded by graffiti. Most people thought they were pretty cool photos but definitely not everyone. I heard that heels and yoga don’t go together. What’s with all the black all the time? Graffiti and yoga? I say, why the heck not!

Labels can be very dangerous. Judging a book by its cover can be very dangerous and what good is it doing you and the world around you. Some of my closest friends are people I never thought I would be good friends with. They’re all so different from one another and I think they’re amazing and I wouldn’t have it any other way. What if I never gave them a chance because of the clothes they were wearing or the music they listened to or because I thought they weren’t living their life the way I thought they should be, or didn’t fit into the mold that society has created for each and every one of us.

Our individuality is what makes this world so interesting. If we were all exact replicas of one another the world would be a pretty boring place. Each of us brings something unique and beautiful to the table.

So, I’m not sad or happy, I’m not gay or straight, I’m not a mom or a wife, I’m not rich or poor, I’m not successful or a failure, I’m not fat and I’m not skinny, I’m not stupid and I’m not smart because I’m not a label, I’m me and you are you!

Let’s stop the labeling and spend more time loving one another for exactly who they are and the role we all play in this crazy, mad, beautiful world.

Best,
Jenna