Start Where You Are

As part of my yoga teacher certification, I have been reading Start Where You Are by Pema Chodron. Subtitled "A Guide to Compassionate Living," I really wasn't sure to expect but it is such a gold mine of wisdom! I had to renew it from the library because I wasn't finished by the time it was due, and even now that I have finished it I think I could have taken a whole year to get through it, slowly underlining and meditating on these concepts. I will need to read it again in years to come as I teach and practice yoga, but for now, here are some of the thoughts I enjoyed:

• Ego is a fat person going through a small door. Be willing to drop the story line.
• Confusion and obstacles are part of the path.
• Difficult people in our lives show us our blind spots. They get through to us.
• Be familiar, open and honest. Understand humanness.
• Lean into the pain, give away the pleasure.
• "To be fearless isn't really to overcome fear, it's to come to know its nature." I am capable.
• "You should never have expectations for other people. Just be kind to them."
• "The next moment is always fresh and open. You don't have to get frozen in an identity of any kind."
• "The key to compassionate action is this: everyone needs someone to be there for them, simply to be there."
• Gloriousness and wretchedness need each other. One inspires, one softens.
• "Feeling irritated, restless, afraid, or hopeless is a reminder to listen more carefully. It's a reminder to stop talking; watch and listen." Resentment is not an obstacle, it is a reminder.
• And one of my favorite quotes on being happy: "The underlying point of all our study and practice is that the happiness we seek is here to connect with at any time. They happiness we seek is our birthright. To discover it we need to be more gentle with ourselves, more compassionate toward ourselves and the universe. The happiness we seek cannot be found through grasping, trying to hold on to things. It cannot be found through getting serious and uptight about wanting things to go in the direction that we think will bring happiness. We are always taking hold of the wrong end of the stick. The point is that the happiness we seek is already here and it will be found through relaxation and letting go rather than through struggle."

These are such deep, inspiring thoughts and I need a lot of time to think about their meaning and how they apply to me, my practice, and my role as a teacher. I consider myself a pretty compassionate person, but reading this book would convince anyone they can do much better. Everyone should try to add some more compassion to their life! You can relate your pain to that of others, you can think about how you affect the world around you, you can deal graciously with that person you have a hard time with, and you can enjoy a much fuller experience on this Earth through increased compassion! So deep. So awesome.

www.gobodhiyoga.com

Wo shi yige laoshi

我是一個老師

As a volunteer English teacher in China a few years ago, one of the first phrases I learned to say in Mandarin was "I am a teacher."

Once again I find myself hearing this phrase in my head!

It was a stressful experience to teach my first class. I felt like a yoga baby in that I had only personally been practicing yoga for a couple of months, and the thought of teaching terrified me. I decided to start where I knew: running. I had come to love how good it felt to follow a run with yoga, and learned some techniques from this site my sister-in-law referred me to. Since a lot of my yoga experience was based on running, I started with a routine to follow a run. I ran through my plan several times before, and when I actually got to teach my teacher training friends I felt very comfortable and had a good time. I was so grateful for their positive, helpful feedback! I was surprised at how well they felt I did, and was very happy I had conveyed such a sattvic vibe, according to Syl. That was great to hear.

If my first teaching experience was building from what I knew, my second teaching experience was a step into the unknown. I really want to teach prenatal yoga at some point, so using our teacher manual and the same online site, I came up with a gentle routine for expectant mothers. I got a lot of feedback from moms in the room about what they felt would work in their experience, and I was grateful for that insight since I have never been pregnant before! This will be an exciting area for me to venture into.

My teacher Syl took this photo during my prenatal class during a modified tree pose. My favorite  thing about this picture is that I am totally on fire with the glow of the evening sun reflecting off the floor. I wasn't aware of this at the time!

me and my mat

As I did my personal practice of yoga today, it occurred to me how important it is for me to be exploring yoga for myself, in order to teach others. Think of the classic librarian, one who you could ask for a recommendation on a book and she would be able to walk past shelves, pause at one, continue on and carefully select the one she is thinking of, knowing exactly what it is you want and what the pages hold. She has had experiences with many books and from that can recommend them to you. My personal practice is helping me develop the skills that will give me the confidence with asanas to say 'Here, try this!' as well as helping me to continually be a student of yoga. I earned a bachelor's degree last year but I am quite certain I will always be a student at heart, and this opportunity to never stop learning is exciting.

Today I stood on my mat without a plan and just went with it, based on how I was feeling and what naturally should go next. It liked that I was able to come up with the routine and not have to follow anyone or a routine that I am familiar with. The other day I had to laugh at myself when I started a sentence to my husband with the words, "I think I feel..." because it was just so me! Well, which is it, thinking or feeling?? I have that inward battle sometimes and I like that a personal practice gets me into the 'feel' zone. Don't worry about doing the exact same asanas on each side. You will feel it as you switch sides. Don't worry too much about what comes next. You will feel it come! Often, on the yoga mat and off, my brain is maybe a little too much involved and things get muddled, so I love this chance to just mute the thoughts and feel.

For more information, visit http://www.gobodhiyoga.com/