Crowdpleaser

My teacher wonders if he's wasting my time in the monthly private we have. I wonder if he is trying to tell me I'm wasting his time... I'm slow to move, low in confidence, lacking the perspective to sift through my confusions. Perhaps I'm missing the point in yoga? I feel mired in all the... Continue Reading →

December 16, 2017 4

Not quite half a decade

Last month my local yoga studio sent me a sweet email acknowledging our anniversary! Apparently I've been going to class there for four years now. This is only a little less than the total length of time I've been practising. One of the teachers then messaged me with the breakdown of my 'stats' -- how... Continue Reading →

December 1, 2017 0

Yoga with the dentist

So I've finally had my troublesome tooth taken out. It's been grumbling for a long time and I consulted with various experts to see if it could be saved... Turns out not. So facing one of my greatest fears, I went for an extraction. The last time I had a tooth out it was agonising,... Continue Reading →

November 28, 2017 6

Dying for some rest

I've been thinking a little about Śavāsana recently, doing a tiny writing assignment for my teachers. In the nice way of coincidences this weekend I also fell into talking with Hubby about introducing a more restorative aspect into his practice. As he's becoming more free of chronic pain I see him getting onto a bit... Continue Reading →

November 26, 2017 1

One of the crowd

Here’s another Yoga First: in hot vinyasa class recently I deliberately put myself in the front row, the row right in front of the mirrors. 75 minutes of practising about 10cm away from my own reflection. I would usually avoid this position, preferring to hide from myself in the second row. But I’ve been embracing... Continue Reading →

October 22, 2017 8

Calling Ganesha

A yogi friend of mine’s just been found by Ganesha. She’s been seeing him everywhere recently, she says, to the point where she bought a murti for her home. And she’s started a mantra practice multiple times a day. We chanted together recently: 108 times oṃ gaṃ gaṇapataye namaḥ. I don’t usually repeat a mantra... Continue Reading →

October 21, 2017 4

Um, OM

Now that I’m teaching yoga in a gym setting, there are all sorts of questions I ask myself about my own practice, my teaching, and about what yoga is — or what I might reasonably assume a regular office worker wants it to be in their mid-week lunch break. Interesting questions, for which I don’t... Continue Reading →

October 19, 2017 3

Shift it

I’ve had some amazing moments with my students this week. A bit of Sanskrit punning after class from one, some good questions from another who is usually very self-contained (with a good line in sceptical faces!), and the one is who usually very physically cautious and always takes the lighter options was asking about how... Continue Reading →

October 8, 2017 2

Upside down sharing

At the weekend I crept away to work on a teaching sequence while Hubby was calling home. He finished more quickly than I expected and popped his head round the door to ask if he could bring his breakfast in and watch me. Why not! It turned into a really lovely shared experience that just... Continue Reading →

October 3, 2017 2

Defining practice

One of my yoga friends asked me recently if she could take me out for coffee: she had something she wanted to ask me. I assumed it would be a request for a favour of some kind. But no, it was advice she wanted. She started off the conversation a little shyly, then launched into... Continue Reading →