Butt Up Head Down

"A photographer gets people to pose for him. A yoga instructor gets people to pose for themselves." ~T. Guillemets

I went our on a limb and took a private yoga session with a new instructor. I fell for his marketing and I fell out of a bunch of poses. I began getting Yogi Brian emails right around the time I started taking classes back in the fall. Since I was going to classes at the Y where I worked and thus the classes are free, I didn't feel that I should pay anyone for class. Through my exploration in recent months and the thought that I may want to introduce yoga to my martial arts compatriots I thought I need to expand my horizons. So with some Christmas cash that I received from mom I thought I would splurge on a private session.

I tend to be the type of person that is willing to go blindly into situation so here I go and pony up the cash and head to his studio in the basement of his house. The space was a bit smaller then I thought it would be but I felt very at peace once I stepped in. Up on the wall was a poster with a giant Aum on it and what looks like some abstract drawings on it but as you get closer you realize that is every conceivable yoga pose as the background. It was beautiful and inspirational.

Yogi Brian came downstairs and we got the introductions out of the way and sat down on our mats. He asked me what I like about yoga and what I was looking for. Then we chanted Aum and proceed to do Nadi Sodhana (alternating nostril breathing). Brian had me lie down and do hip circle and that was pretty much all I did on my back until savasana. I spent most of the hour with my head below my butt. I did shoulder stands, elbow stands, hand stands and plows. There were also plenty of down and up dogs, low planks. It was great. To be honest it wasn't a life changing experience that he described to me on the phone but it was well worth the money. I will try out a few of the group classes when I can.

We had a great chat after we were done and he could see that I am open to accepting what yoga has to offer, which of course I am or I wouldn't have been there. He also told me to tell my instructor at the Y they had taught me well.

Just another step on a path that leads to myself.