Whether or not you do yoga, “Practice on Your Own Mat” applies. We all distract ourselves with short-hand stories about the people around us. (See a police officer and notice the story you tell.) We do it to help us navigate the world more efficiently. But if I drop my stories and wonderings about people and feel sensation, I connect with what is actually happening in me. My thoughts and stories feel real and true but practicing on my own mat brings me back to my own experience. It is the only one I can access and do anything about.