During the summer, the temperature in the Sinai Peninsula and the Negev Desert is HOT. Over 100 degrees hot. This landscape is where the Israelites wandered with Moses for forty years.

This desert has precious little shade. If you’re caught out in the desert in the afternoon, shade can mean your survival.

You don’t need much shade. Just a tiny little bit.

I Kings says that when he was in the desert, Elijah put his head under a broom tree. Growing in the desert, broom trees don't have enough water to grow very high—just high enough to put your head under to shield it from the sun. The shade of a broom tree, like a tiny little oasis, helped Elijah to survive.

Often I hear stories about how thankful people are for yoga. Academic college teachers, college students, moms, and psychologists alike have told me stories about how yoga class is a tiny oasis in the middle of the week.

In the deserts of our lives, yoga is a broom tree, offering rest, peace, and a chance to get your head out of the heat. 

This week, I'm thankful for the shady branches of the yoga tree. 

If you were to create an analogy for your yoga practice, what would it be?