Where is my Guru?

"A journey of a thousand miles starts in front of your feet"
-Lao-tzu

Take a good look at your feet. Do you realize that your feet carry you around all day long? If your feet could talk, what do you think they'd be telling you today? I'm sure there are times when you make them suffer for fashion. That's when you know they deserve to be rewarded with a pedicure or a yoga practice.
In yoga, we honor our feet right from the first standing pose, Tadasana or Mountain. We build the foundation from the feet up, which is why we take the time to stretch the toes, find our center, and firmly root them into the Earth. Our feet keep us grounded and since they're the closest to the Earth, they deserve a shout out. Let's face it; there'd be no yoga if we didn't have feet. Every single asana requires that they be activated, so they not only need to show up to class, they need to support us.
Although most of us take our feet for granted, in my case, they have gone beyond their duty of moving me around. During my numerous anxiety attacks, it was my feet that I'd turn to for security. When anxiety strikes, your thoughts go so far above the clouds that you feel as though you're riding a hot air balloon 200 mph. The most effective way to come back down to Earth smoothly is to stand on your bare feet, breathing deeply. By rooting them into the floor you're subconsciously bringing your energy down. Connecting your feet to the Earth brings you to the present moment. Anxiety takes you into the future where anticipation resides. So to anchor my hot air balloon, I'd call in my size 7 friends and their team of ten for reinforcement.
Be grateful for every limb that holds your body together, but be especially kind and loving to your feet. Not only do they bring you to places physically, but they force you to live in the present. I don't have to go very far to see my Guru - just gotta look down!