YOGA
“IF IT DOES NOT MAKE YOU MORE KIND,
MORE PATIENT,
AND MORE REASONABLE,IT’S NOT YOGA”
-RUSTY WELLS
TRUE STORY:
25 YEARS AGO I STUMBLED INTO MY FIRST YOGA CLASS AT THE LOCAL 24-HOUR FITNESS IN WEST LOS ANGELES. I REMEMBER HEARING A LOT OF SANSKRIT WORDS AND A LOT OF CUES TO BREATHE. “HUMMM, SO THIS WAS ALL THE RAGE?”…
…EVEN THOUGH I WAS UNSURE, SOMETHING ALWAYS DREW ME BACK TO GIVE YOGA ANOTHER TRY, AT A DIFFERENT STUDIO, WITH A DIFFERENT TEACHER. TEN YEARS LATER IN SAN FRANCISCO, AT THE RECOMMENDATION OF A FRIEND, I FOUND MYSELF IN A BHAKTI FLOW YOGA CLASS, AND ON THAT DAY EVERYTHING CLICKED. WITHOUT HAVING EVER STUDIED ANY YOGA LITERATURE I FOUND A DEEP UNDERSTAND OF WHAT YOGA MEANT FOR ME. I CAME TO EXPERIENCE YOGA, BEYOND THE MUSIC, THE MANTRAS, THE MAT, OR THE MOVES…
… “IF IT DOES NOT MAKE YOU MORE KIND, MORE PATIENT, AND MORE REASONABLE, IT’S NOT YOGA” SHARED RUSTY WELLS, THE MAN WHO WAS TEACHING THAT BHAKTI FLOW YOGA CLASS. IN 2016 AFTER COMPLETING 600 HOURS OF BHAKTI TEACHER TRAINING I STARTED TEACHING YOGA BECAUSE I FOUND INSTRUCTING JUST AS MUCH A PRACTICE AS MOVING THROUGH THE POSTURES.
I HOPE WE STUMBLE INTO EACH OTHER ON OR OFF THE MAT ONE OF THESE DAYS - WELL…. IS THERE REALLY SUCH A THING AS ‘STUMBLING’ ANYWAYS?