Tag Archives: Yoga

You Are Such a Wild Thing

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Today has been a little crazy hectic and I don’t have the time I wish I did for a really meaty post, so I’m just going to give a little shout out to a pose that I like to do for fun.  I’ve seen it written down as Camatkarasana, but I’ve only ever heard it in class as “wild thing.”  It’s a quirky little pose that doesn’t enjoy the best reputation among some yoga circles, due to it’s “newness.”  And it’s certainly not an easy pose, but there is something about it that I love.  Maybe it’s the phrase “wild thing” and the fact that my favorite children’s book is Where the Wild Things Are.” Maybe it’s the idea of being wild and free.  Perhaps it’s the lifting and opening of the heart.  I’m not sure.  But, I dig it.  So, if you don’t usually put a little wild thing into your practice, go ahead and get wild!  See what it does for you!

Namaste!

Lorin

What a Nice Day!

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Today started off a little iffy.  I didn’t sleep well all  night, due to a cold (or allergies) that was giving me a headache and sore throat.  So, when the cat went off this morning at 6, I was not pleased.  After ignoring her for a while, I started to get up, but my great spousal unit, Derek, told me to stay put since I hadn’t slept and he would take care of it.  Yay for getting some sleep.  When I did get up, it was time to start prepping for my final teach practice.  This was my first run-through of the teach with actual students and I was nervous about it.

After we arrived and set up, the victims, er, students started to arrive.  My fellow teacher trainees, Yvonne and Katie, attended.  Maiga, a wonderful instructor and inspiration, was their.  A former university student and now friend and yogi came to practice with us.  And, my daughter, Abbigael, came along for moral support and a dose of yoga.

Though I was really nervous, it went well.  There was a little weirdness with my playlist (it froze up on the first song) that caused some distraction.  But, once that was fixed, it all went fine and was quite enjoyable.  I got great feedback from the attendees, which I’m now working to incorporate into the plan.

After class, we headed home, where another nice treat was awaiting me.  A few days ago, Bob Weisenberg, from Elephant Journal had contacted me about writing a post about YIOM.  When I came home and checked my email, I found that my post was live on the EJ site.  COOL!

Now I’m revising my teach plans, checking  out twitter conversation about the Elephant post, feeling grateful for my yoga friends and family, and considering pizza for dinner.  And, the sun is out and it’s a lovely temperature outside.  Ahhhhhh, nice!   That’s a yoga day!

Namaste!

Lorin

Even Yogis Get Nervous

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The last few weeks, I’ve been preparing – like mad – for my final teach in a 200 hour teaching training program.  Despite the usual demands of a very time consuming job and a large family, I’ve  kept up with the work in the program fairly well.  But, I have to say, coming down the home stretch is donkey-kicking my rear.  I am, to be blunt, freaked out and really nervous.  Other people in the program certainly get what I’m experiencing, as we are all together in this place.  However, those friends and acquaintances who aren’t  seem to be a little baffled about why it’s a big deal.

Recently, I’ve heard: “You are a teacher. How hard can it be to teach yoga?”  “You do yoga every day.  It can’t be that hard to just tell other people what to do.”  “Aren’t you yoga people supposed to be really calm all the time?”  hmmm   I’m pretty sure the answers are: hard, yes it can, and supposed-to-be isn’t the same as are.  It’s interesting how we assume that some level of expertise in an area means that all of the characteristics associated with that area will be firmly in one’s grasp all the time.  Doctors should never be sick.  Psychiatrists should never be depressed.  Teachers should have children who get all As.  Yogis should be supernaturally calm and composed every minute.  It’s a lovely idea, but I don’t think it works that way and it’s an important message for both the yoga teacher and yoga students.

Doing yoga can help one achieve a greater state of equanimity and calm.  That’s been one of the major benefits for me in my practice.  And, as a teacher trainee, I also know the philosophical part of this.  I know about aparigraha.  I understand that I should let go of what I’m clinging to (whether that is desire or aversion) and not attach to the fruits of my actions.  Yep, I got it.  But, knowing something and being able to enact it all the time are two different things.

Yoga students and teachers are just people.  They are regular people.  And, when you think about it, the yamas and niyamas wouldn’t be necessary if these traits and habits weren’t pretty natural/normal/usual parts of our human animal-ness.  Yoga teachers and students worry, get mad, have a beer, eat french fries, watch bad TV, read pulp fiction, and so on.  So, if you are a yogi, don’t be too hard on yourself or your peers for being the human blessings that you are.

Namaste,

L