1
00:00:08,177 --> 00:00:11,081
We are an extended
affinity group

2
00:00:11,181 --> 00:00:13,750
and one person among
us has a background in yoga.

3
00:00:13,850 --> 00:00:16,032
This person proposed
to lead some practices.

4
00:00:16,132 --> 00:00:18,130
In reality, they had
already been doing it

5
00:00:18,230 --> 00:00:20,229
in person before COVID-19

6
00:00:20,329 --> 00:00:22,770
and proposed to
continue remotely.

7
00:00:22,870 --> 00:00:26,369
So it has been two months that
we have been meeting by Jitsi,

8
00:00:26,469 --> 00:00:28,897
three times a week
on a fixed schedule.

9
00:00:28,997 --> 00:00:33,384
This is the way we have
found to stay healthy,

10
00:00:33,484 --> 00:00:36,882
both physically and mentally
during this period of isolation.

11
00:00:37,182 --> 00:00:38,683
It's such a simple thing,

12
00:00:38,783 --> 00:00:42,191
but it gains additional significance
in this moment that we're living.

13
00:00:42,291 --> 00:00:44,714
Because maybe it's
never been so difficult

14
00:00:44,814 --> 00:00:47,237
to keep the body
active and alive.

15
00:00:47,337 --> 00:00:49,578
Another thing that the
pandemic has impacted a lot

16
00:00:49,678 --> 00:00:53,747
is disrupting our weekly
rhythms, the sense

17
00:00:53,847 --> 00:00:57,422
of routine and awareness
of what day it is,

18
00:00:57,522 --> 00:00:59,638
or what part
of the week it is,

19
00:00:59,738 --> 00:01:02,550
and even how long we
have been in this situation.

20
00:01:02,650 --> 00:01:06,336
Having a weekly commitment
with other people

21
00:01:06,436 --> 00:01:09,824
at a pre-determined day
and time helps.

22
00:01:09,924 --> 00:01:13,785
It is also something
that has helped me

23
00:01:13,885 --> 00:01:15,714
to bring attention
to my body.

24
00:01:15,814 --> 00:01:19,441
I usually am very active,

25
00:01:19,541 --> 00:01:22,717
I ride my bike, I don't
know, for hours a day.

26
00:01:22,817 --> 00:01:24,566
All that stopped now.

27
00:01:24,666 --> 00:01:27,183
So I have been spending
many hours online,

28
00:01:27,283 --> 00:01:31,854
suddenly all my communications,
mobilizations,

29
00:01:31,954 --> 00:01:34,020
news, work, everything
goes through there.

30
00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:38,050
So the very fact of
answering the question

31
00:01:38,150 --> 00:01:40,640
'how are you doing today?'

32
00:01:40,740 --> 00:01:44,285
- something we often do
at the start of practice -

33
00:01:44,385 --> 00:01:46,409
encourages me not to
just stay in my head.

34
00:01:46,771 --> 00:01:48,574
If we want to build
a fairer world,

35
00:01:48,674 --> 00:01:50,070
more equal, more free,

36
00:01:50,170 --> 00:01:52,357
for me it is fundamental
that we try to build

37
00:01:52,457 --> 00:01:54,485
autonomy with regards to our health,

38
00:01:54,585 --> 00:01:58,202
so that we do not depend on the
State apparatus, on the system.

39
00:01:58,302 --> 00:02:01,714
For that it is essential that
we share this knowledge,

40
00:02:01,814 --> 00:02:04,992
these practices, without conditioning
them to a financial exchange.

41
00:02:05,493 --> 00:02:08,015
We practice with
people that

42
00:02:08,115 --> 00:02:10,620
we already had a bond with
before the pandemic came.

43
00:02:10,720 --> 00:02:12,688
So every time we meet,

44
00:02:12,788 --> 00:02:14,490
every time we practice,

45
00:02:14,590 --> 00:02:16,683
even if we don't talk much,

46
00:02:16,783 --> 00:02:20,287
even if we don't interact more
than the practice itself,

47
00:02:20,387 --> 00:02:23,215
that bond that we
had before rekindles.

48
00:02:23,315 --> 00:02:25,749
And it rekindles in me
that collective spirit

49
00:02:25,849 --> 00:02:28,086
- that notion that I
am part of a group,

50
00:02:28,186 --> 00:02:29,701
that I'm part of a gang

51
00:02:29,801 --> 00:02:32,391
and that these are people
that I can count on

52
00:02:32,491 --> 00:02:34,517
and that there are lots
of things we can together.

53
00:02:34,617 --> 00:02:37,169
This is something that 
we tend to miss a lot

54
00:02:37,269 --> 00:02:39,821
in our current context.

55
00:02:39,921 --> 00:02:42,317
And it's not by watching
celebrities on Youtube

56
00:02:42,417 --> 00:02:44,814
that we get that
kind of feeling.

57
00:02:44,914 --> 00:02:47,955
It's by connecting with people
that we share a bond with,

58
00:02:48,055 --> 00:02:52,352
and who give us the power to 
act, both during the pandemic

59
00:02:52,452 --> 00:02:54,022
and after that pandemic passes.

60
00:02:54,122 --> 00:02:56,728
Every action of mutual aid at
this time is very important.

61
00:02:56,828 --> 00:02:59,572
Sometimes we think that,
something like self care,

62
00:02:59,672 --> 00:03:00,804
like taking care of our health,

63
00:03:00,904 --> 00:03:05,241
is not as relevant as actively
fighting to destroy the system.

64
00:03:05,341 --> 00:03:08,229
But we need to be well,
so when all this ends

65
00:03:08,329 --> 00:03:11,217
we can continue to fight against
the State and against capitalism.