The One-On-One

Gave in to the urge to return to the Sunday meditation class which, at 6:00 p.m., is not ideal for my Sunday travels but I do enjoy the class and I'm thinking about making adjustments to my schedule.

Thought going to meditation would also help with my nerves as I had my one-on-one with my yoga trainer, Stacy, on Monday night and the meditation did help. After the first guided meditation, we ventured into a full body tapping session...

One of my classmates messaged me hours before my one-on-one to encourage me which I thought was super sweet. She also told me that the one-on-one would be unlike the sessions during training when we got feedback; it would be more chill.

Had scheduled my one-on-one about a month ago and it's amazing how fast the time went by. I had done research, wrote my sequence and tested out poses but when it's go time, the sequence that you have in front of you feels so lackluster.

And, again, I think a huge key is to remember to allow people time to unwind and release without trying to rush... I did a restorative sequence with Stacy and it went well. I get a kick out of finding postures that are not often used in class and introducing them which I did during her session.

It was a relief to have the one-on-one in the books. I took a short breather and started thinking about my next sequence for my Wednesday Seva class...

For some reason, though, I was angry yesterday which was weird because I should have felt a longer sense of relief... Took an hour-long bath, read and slept solidly and my mood was better this morning.

Listened to Lesson 27 of Sharon Salzberg's Meditation Challenge twice since it discussed anger among other topics.

The Seva class went reasonably well today -- even though I still get nervous beforehand. Went to Zumba tonight and the teacher forgot parts of her routine and she joked "Don't pay attention to me; I'm just the instructor" -- which was my signal that everyone stutters.

Not Trying To...

Reported for Jury Duty yesterday and it's still something that I have mixed emotions about. It can certainly be an inconvenience but, from a historical perspective alone, I'm there and not trying to answer in a way that will get me dismissed.

The last time that I got called one of the lawyers made a point to say that just because someone is quiet and not speaking up during the Voir Dire process, doesn't mean that person won't get selected.

The city has gone out of its way to expedite the process and to help people understand the importance of being a juror. They even address the fact of people in the county not being called as often.

Really liked that the city has collaborated with an artists' guild to help add character to the, otherwise, drab jury assembly room. 

What I didn't like was the ungodly amount of people who were sick, yuck. Being contagious should get you excused!

That first day of jury duty brought a lot of waiting (as usual) and I know that I'm not the only one who got tired of sitting. Got in the corner by the secret elevator on the mezzanine and did some bird dog to help with my knee.

For lunch I walked through the City Garden which is always a nice downtown perk...

Speaking of bird dog. I've done some of the knee PT exercises that Gingerzingi shared with me. Thank youuuu!

Wow, there are a lot of exercises. My maximum has been eight but even on the day that I did four, the exercises helped considerably.

When I went to get a massage, I could feel the tenderness in my IT band area and the therapist said that she was trying to release my glute which makes sense because my glute was on fire when I did the sets of bird dog; my least favorite move in yoga but, from now on, I'll definitely be embracing it. Overall, the exercises put me in a meditative state and all those reps of cat/cow made me get in touch with my breathing. Win-win.

Exchanges...

Full day yesterday.

Went to Zumba and from there headed to a new age store to see if they had rain sticks. There was one left and I listened to it for a good 10 minutes but couldn't decided on whether I really wanted it. From there headed to Talbots -- a store I usually only visit at the end of a season. I was surprised by how much pink stuff they had.

Pink is the new winter color???

Took a brief rest then went to this gathering. This woman, Pati,returned from Nepal with a plethora of singing bowls and while I have a nice set, I felt compelled to go and I'm glad that I did.

Pati has been in the healing arts for about 25 years and she had me cracking up when she said Am I crazy? I'm going half way around the world...

Made a pit stop at home then went to give a sound session. I love to hear what people think of the session afterwards. People have had interesting experiences. The person that I gave the session to yesterday called it an energy session. Hadn't really thought of that way but I guess most exchanges, massage etc., are an exchange of energy.

Saturday was a good day but I found myself craving more stillness.

Saw a couple of Cardinals this morning but I was too far away to focus well.

Practicing

Today's Classroom

Because of yoga teacher training, I didn't have a whole lot of time to prepare for today's yoga class.

Skipped swimming yesterday, wrote a sequence then practiced it.

Practicing a sequence totally makes a difference as it allows you to see where the gaps are as far as transitions and it also allows you to see how much time the sequence is going to take and, ultimately, if the sequence is safe and makes sense.

As a trainee, there is the urge to rush through teaching but that's the opposite of what you should be doing and, as Stacy says, you also have to respect the silences.

The anatomy of sequencing made more sense to me despite having less time to write it. I intuited what pose would come next and I didn't use every pose when I taught but Stacy also told us to be okay with not using everything that we've written and, overall, it's better to have too much than not enough.

Went to Zumba today and the teacher forgot steps in several songs and that was a sign for me that stuff happens.

I've been enjoying playing my singing bowls through savasana. Felt more confident about that today too. It’s amazing what happens when you’re patient and mindful. Was glad that I set a silent alarm on my Fitbit as I'd forgotten to disable the lock screen on my iPod and, therefore, couldn't see what time it was. As a general rule, I don't want to fidget with an electronic item while trying to teach. I read, somewhere, that gadgets, especially a phone, is a reminder of busyness.

Anticipation

Running on fumes...

Yoga teacher training was this past weekend and the weather intervened again. We had a delayed start on Sunday because of icy roads...

My hair is overdue to be washed. The fish tank is overdue a cleaning. The Subaru peeps have called to say that my car service is overdue. One of my fellow trainees scoffed when I mentioned going to the store after YTT. Apparently, she uses InstaCart. Never heard of it although I'm aware of such services.

Actually cooked after work -- something that I haven't done in years. Kept wondering why I was tired and sore then I remembered that we practiced yoga for, at least, five hours over the weekend. Plus, there was the anticipation of having to teach again.

Debated about going to Zumba tonight but I needed the release...

For my teaching session, my name ended up being picked last -- which was a blessing and a curse. For our January training, Stacy actually told us to come prepared to teach for 30 minutes so I had a sequence prepared but, as I waited for my turn, it seemed like my sequence was crap and I had doubts about whether it was balanced but it turned out well. One of my classmates called my style of class fusion because I mixed gentle with restorative. I also did a little "Dharma Talk" at the beginning, which people seemed to like.

Tried to connect topics. Talked about it being winter and how people have the natural inclination to hibernate because our bodies are evolutionary old. I referenced the phenomena of lotska where Russian peasants exhibited a form of human hibernation.

Did some things wrong but, mostly, I used strategies that we learned in training. Stacy gives good feedback and likes to say I'm just picking nits at this point.

Wish that I were a person who could do things on the fly. I did adjust my lesson plan but really wanted to shift directions from what I had planned because I could see how tired everyone was and I didn't want to take them through any challenging poses. At times, felt like I was all over the place and that my teaching lacked cohesiveness but that wasn't the way it was perceived.

At any rate, I have to move on because I'm teaching again on Wednesday.

Until You're Not

Fog on Swim Night

Went swimming on Tuesday. Hadn't been since the end of December and it felt good to be back in the pool. The only downside is that I was so congested that I couldn't sleep. As Alison says, I need a saltwater pool.

Taught a yoga class at work. Was supposed to teach it last week but the Polar Vortex intervened. I was, partially, grateful for the reprieve but there was also part of me that wanted to have the class under my belt.

Put together a sequence, practiced it. Practiced it again. Fretted over whether it was long enough or cohesive enough. Attempted to put together a playlist, added to my Teaching Yoga Checklist etc...

One of my coworkers was so sweet. He saw me in the room beforehand and helped by vacuuming the floor as well as getting a battery for the clock.

The room ended up being too small but we forged ahead. Forgot about four poses and was truly surprised when my Fitbit's silent alarm buzzed to signal that it was time for savasana.

Although many yoga teachers discreetly use notes, I felt bad about referring to them, which is why I missed a few poses. Forgot to put on music; you never know who's going to be triggered by too much silence.

Started with a guided meditation and incorporated my wind chime so, in some respects, it would have felt awkward to go from the music of a wind chime to music music.

In the end, my coworkers were very encouraging. Regarding fulfilling our assist/adjustment requirement, Stacy shrugged and said You'll be nervous until you're not. I remember reading something about how to prepare for a speech and the author said that The audience wants you to do well and I tried to keep that in mind.

730 Days

Went to Zumba this morning and modified when I needed to. Left Zumba to go rinse salt off my car and, of course, I picked the bay where the guy kept putting quarters in. Had to talk to myself -- "He won't be here forever." Another bay opened up and this guy, who pulled in after in me, let me go ahead of him. Thought that was very nice of him.

My knee is feeling better. Not sure what made it wonky to begin with but I'm just grateful that my stride is back.

After Zumba and the car wash, pretty much stayed at home. Practiced about eight yoga poses then read about them. Also went back to review the Yamas and Niyamas which I'm familiar with but would struggle to tell people how they're organized etc. I always remember, though, that Ahimsa, one of the Yamas, is the highest dharma.

Last night, went to visit Asmira who I hadn't seen in years. It's hard to believe how fast 730 days go by. As usual, Asmira's hospitality is off the charts. I was so full that there was no room for dessert but I did enjoy the green tea that Asmira mixed with ginger and lemon; it was so refreshing.