MISSING YOGA

I practiced yoga for several years, but have yet to find the right teacher here in the Triangle Area.

I notice two very dramatic changes in me when I'm not doing yoga:

~I'm less present, more scattered, I have a difficult time prioritizing and letting go of the small stuff.

~I'm less flexible (physically), my muscles feel coiled up, my spine more rigid, my posture horrible.

I changed at the new year to an non-yoga exercise program that is more "athletic" thinking that is what I need to get in shape, but what I gave up is catching up with me. I need to shop around some more for a yoga class that's right for me - not intense aerobic-type yoga classes. The best classes are the ones where I leave feeling like a rubber band - mind and body.

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Here's an old yoga-related poem I just revised this morning:

yoga blanket

j.b. rowell

offered before deep meditation
when bodies lay in corpse exposed
to air-conditioned currents

blanket unfolds poncho colors
of Mexican sky to cover
chilled toes and tuck under chin

coolness woven into course wool
fibers carry smell of others
not detectable in passing

blanket warms and settles
like a parachute pulled down
by small hands in gym class

dome drops onto skin
scents mingle

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The curriculum director at my school sent me an article comparing yoga to teaching:

Lessons from Yoga

The premise is that teachers need to follow a yoga pedagogy to teaching:

1) Set Your Intention

2) Personalize the Practice

3) Notice What You Notice

4) Integrate the Experience and Feel the Effects

The last stage is to pay attention to "When the Lotus Flower Blooms."

"Yoga reminds teachers about important but easily overlooked aspects of teaching. As teachers, we must always remember to act deliberately, honor the individual, and remain continually aware and reflective."