So this morning I sailed into the Gym for my usual yoga class, only to be told it had been cancelled, very last-minute, for gymnastics…..I was so stunned…it was fairly early in the morning….that I didn’t ask any questions. As I headed home I wondered if winning the bronze medal yesterday meant that now gymnastics ruled the gym…

I was about to go and change out of my yoga kit when I suddenly noticed the warm enticing sunlight, and so I grabbed my yoga mat and headed for the garden. If there was no class why miss out? So I did my own yoga, in the garden, bathed in glorious sunshine.

It was such a lovely experience that I wondered why we don’t do more classes outside in the sun, then I remembered that I lived in Scotland. What I found was that I was far more aware of my body and my poses, and sun salutation took on a whole new meaning when I was actually raising my arms towards the light and warmth of the real thing.

Feeling the suns rays on my back for ‘down dog’ again intensified the pose, and the gentle warm breeze brushing over my skin was both relaxing and enlivening. The sounds of a sunlit morning in the garden washed through me, leaving an intense feeling of calm and connection with nature. I lay back afterwards and gazed up at the clouds drifting across the clear blue sky and a feeling of my smallness in the Universe allowed my mind to let go for a little while. No need to think or do anything. I just lay and breathed and watched.

These same clouds were drifting on the warm breeze across the vastness of everybodys sky, and making just a tiny appearance on the stage of my view….who else was watching them……where were they going……

…..timeless mindfulness.

Later in the day I headed in to Edinburgh to see an Art exhibition of the Scottish Colourists at the City Art Centre. The bold and vibrant use of colour in these paintings is incredible. I found myself standing back, then zooming right up close to see how they had applied their brushstrokes, and then stepping back again to marvel at how these lines of colour came together into a coherent image…totally amazing. There was one painting which had a half peeled orange at the front and I swear I could smell the orange oil in the air it looked so translucent and juicy. Yet when inspected up close the brushstrokes and colours gave no hint at how alive it would appear from a distance.

My favorite was a huge mesmerising sea and sky scape, filled with shimmering lines of light and motion, by local boy William McTaggart (1835-1910). He had captured the timeless, restless quality of sky and sea beautifully, and I could have gazed into it for hours…

As we left the gallery I glanced up to my left, towards the mound, and I think I saw where those clouds from this morning had wandered….

I was entranced by the sky one more time. It’s amazing how looking up can give such a feeling of space and calm, even in a busy cityscape filled with locals and visitors gearing up for the immanent Festival……
The Scottish Colourists exhibition is running from 21 July to 14 October 2012, and admission is free. You can find the City Art Centre behind Wavelry Train Station, the opposite side to Princes Street. They are also running free family drop in art sessions on Sat 4 and 18 August between 10:30 and 12 noon.