To embody the philosophies of yoga, one must be practicing consistently, and constantly. If we are to take this practice seriously, then taking a few movement classes and subsequently forgetting the concepts by which the practice was built is not going to serve anyone. This is the case with any discipline, “spiritual” or otherwise. As Richard Dawkins has stated, assuming the religion of your parents does not necessarily mean that you are actually following the dictates of that faith. Yogis need to take a cue from this.

A philosophy, a life path, is not something to compromise or be compromised at the whims of your personal tastes. Flexibility, pliancy, understanding: these are all part of the system, yet so is duty and rigor. What we need to look for are those areas in which our practice is lacking, and correct them. This takes work, dedication, and the ability to admit to yourself that certain patterns or habits that may be very deeply rooted are not serving the demands of the discipline.

Last weekend I was walking with my fiancée in our Brooklyn neighborhood when I heard a car honking across the intersection we were crossing. I looked up to find one car had almost slammed into the side of another; the second driver had tried to unnecessarily pass. What amazed me most was what the second driver was doing immediately after almost plowing into the first car: continuing to text someone. It was most likely what nearly caused the accident in the first place, and to shield herself from the blaring glare of the first driver, she returned to her phone, blocking out any chance the man had of making eye contact.

This is not an isolated or rare incident.

To think that not even a decade ago the text message was a rarity, and that only in the last two years has it become one of the most used forms of communication. Yet the medium feeds our constant need of instant gratification, and we act as though if we didn’t send the message that very instant, all would be lost.

I am in no way anti-texting, or anti-any technology. For my various careers, I send dozens of emails daily, same with texts. Like anything, it’s how we use our media that clues us in to who we are, what our practice is. As the famous adage goes: how we do anything is how we do everything.

As a disciple of the yoga philosophy, one which tries to settle the “mindstuff” to be able to focus on one thing at a time (in meditation this could be many things; this should also be so in our everyday life), I realized that texting or emailing while I’m walking on the street, something that I regularly do, would have to stop. Every time I put my head down to type, I took my attention from the reality of where I was. Both mentally and physically I was transported and engaged by something that had nothing to do with cultivating presence in my life.

Not that I’m going to stop using my phone. It is an integral part of my career. The solution, then? If I need to contact someone while I’m out, I stop wherever I am, and proceed to take care of business. When it’s finished, I continue to walk. Such a simple concept, yet one so badly needed on the streets and sidewalks, as well as inside of the cars of our culture. Every distraction is another moment that we’re not paying attention to exactly where we are. And that’s another moment that we lose, which is a shame, as there is so much life out there and our time here so short.