Up The Creek...Let's Share Some Paddles

Today was my first opportunity to finally teach they style of yoga that I have been studying all these years--I subbed an Anusara Inspired Class at the studio in town! Obviously we are changing the name to Yoga 1/2 because I do not yet meet the requirements of Anusara Inspired, but I have to say it was my first moment of, okay, this is how I want to teach, and these are the kinds of students I want to see. My other classes so far have been more challenging than I thought because the students are there for a different purpose, and it is not a style of yoga that I practice--they want to move, not much alignment stuff, just get led through a mildy challenging workout. But these Anusara students in town were fantastic! They were initially disappointed to see their regular teacher was not going to be there, so I knew I had to give them something juicy, challenging and yet attainable so they walk out feeling uplifted and hopefully having gone places they've never been before.

I talked about Obama's inauguration speech as the theme. His first three sentences were "I am humbled..., I am grateful..., and I am mindful." He then went on to talk about how up the creek we all are and that the only reasonable thing for us to do is start giving each other paddles, right? Service. And I am thinking, ask not what yoga can do for me, but what I can do for yoga. How many times have I (do we) come to class with an expectation of what I can get out of this? I want my core worked, I want to float from down dog to uttanasana, I want a longer savasana, I want I want. But each pose has this optimal blueprint, just like we do, each pose has an inherent integrity, and if we can bring those three qualities of humbleness, gratitude and mindfulness to our practice, we are then co-creating, uplifting our asanas to their highest vibrations. So starting on our mats, we cultivate those qualities, physically, then take them out into all our relationships, with the postal worker and our nutritionist and our kids and our ex-husbands...and THAT is service. Right? Because the energy of service can assume so many different forms. We don't have to build houses to help build community, we can build community by functioning at our highest vibration. That just might be the healthiest component we can bring to all our relationships--we can actually heal friends and family members that way. So we worked those three energies into each pose--how would this asana shift if you brought gratitude to it? How can you find humbleness in a deep backbend? How mindful can we be transitioning from Trikonasana to Plank Pose?
I talked about peanut butter too, my new best friend! And I set up Ganesha to honor the transition to a new leadership.

The areas I am weak in are partner work and physical adjustments. I'm just not ready to go there yet. I am finding that teaching is requiring me to become somewhat selfish about my learning curve. As you all probably know, I have been reluctant to teach for many reasons, one of them being that I hold myself to a high standard and I want to give students the best class possible. You take time out of your day and pay a decent amount of money and you want your time and money to be well spent. But now that I am practicing teaching instead of practicing practicing, I sort of have to be of the attitude that, this is what I have to offer, because I can only teach what I know, and I don't have all the answers yet or all the pieces of the puzzle fitting together, and it is going to take me some time to get there. And maybe I teach some crappy classes along the way. Well, it's going to happen, but in the meantime I learning from every single person that comes into class. Their individual body type, their alignments, their questions, their energy, it all adds up. And we co-create the flow of the class.

I really like it. But it is very very challenging and I was pretty nervous before today's class.
On a side note, I had two appointments with a nutritionist here in town and it has been fascinating. She is super knowledgeable and very personable and I learned a ton from her. And yes, we all know I eat really well but there are some minor things I can tweak to bring myself a little closer to optimal health, and I am also seeking a solution to my Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. She is confident we can reverse it through a combination of dietary changes and organ support supplements.

I have been to several Western medical doctors and Complementary Health Practictioners over the past 6 to 8 years, and I am finding that they are all providing pieces to the puzzle of my individual constitution. But what I find the most compelling is when information starts to overlap, and I begin to hear a consistency from one to the other. That's when you know you are onto something! My endocrine system is inharmonious, pituitary-thyroid-pancreas-adrenals and we are hoping to give some system support to bring their relationship back into balance. That's the Cliff Note version. I find it just another path of self-inquiry, which you know is what I think life is all about!

Also went to a movie about Avalanche Safety by these two Canadian dudes who lost 4 friends one day when they were 17 in the back country: The Fine Line. I found it simultaneously educational, amusing, spectacular and traumatizing. These guys are doing a tour to promote it, so keep your eyes out if you have just moved to a ski resort for the winter (Geoff!).

Hey, does anyone know how to post a link to music or sound? I can do the hyperlink to internet stuff but have not yet ventured into the world of audio and perhaps one of these days I would like to share a song or two with you all? Just checking.

My ski report is decent, it is still kicking my ass, still fun-ish and horribly challenging. I tripped and fell into a North Face store today on my way back from yoga at the Peaks and it turns out I kinda sorta needed this outfitty thing that is better for crummy weather days than the gear I already have (and the pants are rather complimentary to the 'ole booty). Let's see if I can find it and show you all...
Yeah, not working, I will have to get a real photo of myself!

So that's all I got for today, maybe going to see "Australia" tonight, yeah I know it loses steam halfway through but it's something to do and fun to see movies at The Nugget.

Empower to the People

You are all probably aware that I have supported Obama's campaign this go-around. Initially, I wasn't picky about whether he or Hilary got into office, I just wanted to end the Republican era in the White House and for that reason did not vote in the Primaries. It was only after he won the Democratic ticket that I really began to perk up and listen to what he had to say and realize that I needed (and wanted) to read his books. But it wasn't until I wandered down to the cafeteria at work one evening to get eat some pasta and watch a snippet of the news with the bellmen and valet on their dinner break, that I heard something that has stayed with me.

Michelle Obama was speaking at the Democratic National Convention, describing how she first met Barack and what he was doing. And he was doing exactly what he is doing now: empowering people. He was, and is, an activist. Acting locally, thinking globally. As he said in his victory speech last night, this campaign and this victory isn't really about HIM, it's about US. He didn't choose Joe Biden to get votes so he could get in the White House; rather, he selected him as a running mate to complement his role as our president, so they could give the best leadership to us.

I looked up the definition of hope in the dictionary and it lists three words: believe, desire, and trust. It's a trinity where each part is equally as vital as the other and none can stand alone or the essence of the concept is weakened or compromised. You know what it makes me think of? Mind, heart, soul. It's brilliant, really, because there is truth in what he represents, and every person watching him and hearing him and feeling the impact of what he is doing, and asking us to do, every person resonates with this event because it is not just true, it is the truth of who we are individually and as the phenomenom of being human beings and sharing this planet with so many other people who are worlds away and yet frighteningly similar.

There is a subtle but profound difference between someone who is powerful and someone who empowers others. A powerful person holds, controls, posseses and often uses force. An empowering leader bestows or transfers that power. As a life-long activist, Obama understands that difference. He believes in us as much as, or maybe more than, we believe in him. And when he took the stage last night he graciously and rightfully handed that power right back to us.

"May the Power Be With You."