Teaching my first Yoga Class

This evening I thought my first yoga class. It was 35 minuets and included hands on adjustments. I thought my two roommates and a friend of ours. I had a hard time feeling confident, because the group I was teaching were not very serious about yoga. I enjoyed using hands on adjustments, I think it adds a great benefit to a class, and in helping people know how its feels to be in a posture. I know I just need to practice teaching more and not to be afraid to share what I know. I tend to have high expectations on myself and when they are not met I get disappointed. I am determined not to let this experience get me down about my ability to teach. I love yoga so much. I just wish I knew how to articulate how I feel about it others, but I guess if others do not care then it does not matter how much one tries. This was a good experience for me to have. It helped me to realize that no matter what I still love yoga and will continue to practice it despite others ignorance about it.

Ayurveda

I am so intrigued with Ayurveda, which means "science of life" in Sanskrit. Ayurveda is the madictonal medicine from India. The more I read and study Ayurvedic philosophy the more I am blown away by the power and truth that it holds. There is a part of me that would love to get training in this modality so that I could become an Ayurvedic doctor. I am done with massage therapy in March. After that time I have no idea what I am going to do. However I trust that when that date arrives I will have a better understanding. I am keeping all my options open. If I still feel as strong about Ayurveda as I do today then I am most definitely going to consider going into that field of medicine. What I like about it so much is that it treats people as individuals. The idea that each person leads with a specific Dosha, therefore have certain tendency in their bodies, is inspiring. We are all not the same therefore will handle different foods differently. It is also so sacred. For me Ayurveda brings together the best of what I already love: massage, oils, and yoga. I just pray that if I am meant to learn more the opportunity will present itself.
http://gobodhiyoga.com

"The Lightest Touch"

In my last teacher trainer session we were given a poem. This poem is called "The Lightest Touch" from Everything is Waiting for You by David Whyte. When i first read this poem I felt a deep sacredness about it. I do not fully understand all that it means, but I still enjoy the spirit behind it. I know it has to do with hands on adjusting during a yoga practice. I feel that touch is very powerful and needs to be done with respect. This poem for me emphasises that power. Here it is:

Good Poetry begins with

the lightest touch

a breezed arriving from nowhere

a whispered healing arrival

a word in your ear

a settling into things

then, like a hand in the dark it

arrest the whole body

stealing you for revelation

In the Silence that follows a great line

you can feel Lazarus

deep inside

even the laziest, most deathly afraid

part of you,

lift up his hands and walk to the light.

http://gobodhiyoga.com/

Lines of Energy

In "Yoga as Self-Transformation" Joel Kramer talks about Lines of Energy. At this last teacher training I was able to feel what he was talking about. We were discussing a variety of postures and charting where the line of energy moves within each pose. I decided to focus on these energy lines, and adjust my body accordingly in order to get into them. Not only did focusing on these lines help me more accurately reach a pose, but I was able to go deeper in. I did not feel as much discomfort. I felt more at balance, because the energy lines were opposing each other and making me more stable. I feel the knowledge of how the energy works within each pose is so so helpful in deepening my practice. http://www.gobodhiyoga.com

Waking up early

Last time I wrote I said I was going to wake up early and do my own personal practice before school. Out of the four days I only got up two of those days. However, the mornings I did yoga Icould feel such an impact throughout my day. I could feel my body. I was so attuned to the needs of body. We were so connected. I love this feeling. I think so often we are outside of ourselves, thinking about the future, others, anything and everything. But there is such a power in just being in the present moment and feeling the ground beneath your feet, or the way your your cloths sit just right on your body. Or how your tense your muscles feel. Yoga allows me to bring more present and to connect not only to what my body has to say, but to what by spirit has to teach. Yoga is so profound. Every time i do it is different and i learn something different. It may seem hard or a daunting but i tell you not to be afraid to try it. It is literally changing my life. Namaste. http://www.gobodhiyoga,com

Personal Practice

Next weekend is the third weekend to my yoga training experience. I must say it is going by so fast, even to fast. At this next teacher training I have to teach the other members of my class a Tier from the Bodhi Flow. I am quite nervous. However, I am going to take this next week and really prepare for this opportunity. I am going to wake up at 5:50 a.m for the next four days and practice the Tier i want to teach for at least a half an hour. I want to know for myself how to get into each posture, once I do this then I will put it into a whole flow. I am excited about this task. The more i do yoga the more i realize how my much my body craves it when i do not do it. I will let ya know how this weeks go.

http://www.gobodhiyoga.com/

"Something Borrowed" by Molly M. Ginty

When one starts to take their personal yoga practice and teach it many worries and concerns may arise. One of these concerns is about if they are stealing another instructors moves, or way of teaching. I know as I have practiced teaching yoga i say the same phrases as Syl. This is because it was the way I learned them. I was worried that I was cooping her. However, after reading the article written by Molly Ginty I feel much better. It really brings in the line of when one is coping someones work and not giving them credit, and when one is innocently using material.

To learn more about Syl and the wonderful yoga she is teaching me go to www.gobodhiyoga.com