Thursday Morning

Well, so much for intimate- we had 20 people in the 7th Street class last night, which is pretty darn good for my first night at a studio where I know no one and for the first time something like this is offered. (About half of the people I did know and the other half were new faces. It was really a delightful blend of practitioners here.) Given that it was the first night of a series about Anusara Yoga I talked about Opening to Grace and Grace being a flow-a dynamic pulsation. We used the pulsation of the breath and the basic pulsation of expanding and contracting in our flow-based practice. The group at 7th Street is really well-trained (Go Mark, Hannah, and Elizabeth- the Anusara Yoga teachers there!) and really fit and strong. If people keep coming to the class, we are going to be in some really fun poses by the end of the time together.

7th Street Yoga is a really nice facility with a really lovely atmosphere. (Not to mention a lovely little clothing boutique. We all know how much I like that. I did manage to not buy anything last night, however, in case you were wondering how my "will teach yoga for clothes" approach to my job held up!) The students in attendance last night were really open, receptive and hard working. It was a pleasure to teach them and to be there.

One of the funny discussions that popped up after class was with one of the guys who was pretty new to yoga. He said while some of it was brutal, he liked the workout and the challenge. He said, "It is probably like skiing- lots of people go once and hate it but if they go back the second day it starts to come together and if they make it a third day then they are hooked."

I said, "That is true for a lot of people in yoga. Although in my husband's case, it was a two year process of starting to actually like yoga. But now he is kicking ass."

So several of us had a fun time talking about that. I think some people come to yoga and find their "home" right away. But for others, it is a different process of "coming home" that takes a lot longer and is less enjoyable along the way. Like Kelly says, "A lot of it is just hard and hurts really bad!"

Some people love the physicality of yoga right away, some people love the philosophy right away, some people love the community right away. Some people do not like any of it right away but have some vague sense that yoga is "right" or "good for them to do" that sustains them until enjoyment comes in. At any rate, I love hearing about that process and all its variations. And this guy ended up buying a 10-class package and so he is at least going to give a few more tries! Mission accomplished.

This morning we are up early. Kelly is taking a personal retreat in California to do some work for himself and so I took him to the airport this morning. He will be gone about 10 days. I stopped on the way home and got a latte and once I finish this post I am going to take advantage of the caffeine boost and do my practice. Then I have an acupuncture appointment, a therapy appointment and my classes to teach. A fun day all in all.

Please remember that the Thursday night classes are now at Westgate not at South. 4:30 is advanced still but the 6:00 class is a flow class now. And do not worry- I will not try to kill you if you double dip. (I will actively try not to kill you, in fact!) Hope to see you there.