Why is balance important? From a life lesson standpoint, it's about learning to enjoy yourself without getting the ego involved.

Learning to savor the moment keeps us from living in constant worry and fear and tension over things that haven't happened yet and may never come to pass. Practicing yoga helps us to undo these bad mental habits and stress triggers that we often unknowingly pick up along the way.

When your breathing is easy and deep, your body works efficiently, and your mind settles. That doesn't mean that your balance (in tree pose or anywhere else) will be perfect and your life will be seamless, but you'll be better equipped to deal with the wobbles and earthquakes that get thrown into the mix.

External means of escape like alcohol, drug use, and even overeating are a means of pushing uncertainty away and covering it up temporarily. And they may feel comforting for a moment, but I don't need to tell you that eventually they will cause more trouble than they ever solve.

Everything you need to know is right there inside, waiting for you to tap in and discover it, and then hopefully do something about it.

Each exhale allows us to let go of the moment that has just passed.

You are whole body, whole mind, whole spirit, all the time. When you experience all of you at once, anything is possible.