The sky was cloudy, but the weather site said it wasn’t going to rain. I double checked Facebook looking for a cancellation. Yoga at the Beach was still one. Yea!

I probably wouldn’t get up early on the weekend for regular yoga. But, yoga on the shores of Lake Michigan lures me to exercise.

I park and walk to the canal where people are setting up. The wind is so strong it’s hard to get the yoga mats to stay put. Some of us were laughing and others growl in frustration.

We start with easy poses to warm up, feeling the moist air touching our skin. Our tree pose was more like "Tree swaying in the wind" pose.

A little less than half-way through it starts to sprinkle. Moments later is starts to pour as I try to cover my keys from my lunge position. We get out of lunge and greet the sky with hands raised and face upturned, accepting the rain.

We almost packed it in, but the rain slowed down. Our instructor said she would be here teaching if we would stay. A few people ran for their cars, the class ruined for them.

How many times do we do this? Things don’t go how we think they are supposed to go so we complain, try to fix things or run away. Daily I would think.

I was already wet so I stayed as we finished our standing poses. Our mats got too slippery to keep us stable so we moved to sitting and laying poses.

In one pose I was on my back holding my right knee into my chest. The rain became stronger falling all over my face. I started to become very uncomfortable. To calm down, I focused on how it felt with my senses. The water drops on my cheeks. Wet hair on my forehead. The waves in the water. I turned off my mind thinking, "This is bad." I let go of the story that yoga at the beach has to be sunny, cool and beautiful every time.

The rain wasn’t bad, it was just wet.

When we have obstacles in our life, most of the time we don’t know if what is happening is good or bad not knowing the big picture.

I breathed, relaxed and felt the wetness on my face. The rain felt refreshing once I stopped thinking of rain as bad.

Life throws undesirable circumstances at us all the time. This is why we need to be able to keep our center within us.

We can stay calm and relaxed this way in the midst of mornings with the kids helping them get ready, or in slow traffic or when sprinklers come on during your party in the park.

Peace is inside. If you take yourself out of your thoughts, stories and judgments, instead feel your physical sensations and notice what’s around you, you can find that place of centered peace again. Breathing deeply helps.

The rain stopped as yoga ended. I walked the pier and watched with fascination at the wind surfers. I would have missed this beautiful sight if I had left earlier.

Today as you face things, see if you can find your center of peace.