yoga etc. #12 (world teachers day)
yoga etc. #12
It is important to expect nothing, to take every experience, including the negative ones, as merely steps on the path, and to proceed.
- Ram Dass
Today on World Teachers’ Day, I want to honor and acknowledge the incredible teachers in my life and all over the world. Those who are building online classrooms after teaching in-person for decades. Those going into work every day, ensuring their physical classrooms stay safe in a pandemic. Those creating traveling libraries out of the trunk of their cars and finding innovative ways to mold minds. Those who have devoted a lifetime not only to teaching but also learning. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
This year, I’ve grown into my own skin as a teacher—a yoga teacher. It’s an honor to be able to hold space and every class I learn more about the practice, myself, and how to be a better teacher to my students. It’s a challenge to see myself as someone people might look up to in this work and I strive to create an equitable, accessible, and comfortable space for exploration and release.
Starting with next week's newsletter, the class schedule will look a bit different. I've tweaked the ones that already exist and added a third class for those completely new to yoga. You’ll see three class titles:
Morning birds ✨ A love letter to my early risers; those getting their move on before the 9-5 grind. It's 60 minutes of powerful and grounding vinyasa class to gently wake up the body for the day ahead.
Foundations ✨ A nod to the curious; those who have never tried yoga before and want to know more. It’s 45 minutes of breathwork and movement, where we’ll deconstruct the poses and explore the foundations of a vinyasa class.
Sunday soul ✨ An oldie with a twist; it’s where we all started. 60 minutes of powerful flowing to the beat followed by a set of restorative poses to close out the week.
Each class is tailored around encouraging acceptance of your body, breath, and practice. My classes are cute and friendly and sweaty and strong—and really really fun. We focus on energetic movement over strict alignment. We flow together and on our own. We explore the inner body and how unique each movement is to each human, each day, each second. We love a dance track and getting carried away with the beat. If you want in, you can start to book in for next week through my new booking system! (this week's schedule is the same and below!)
As always, everyone is welcome, regardless of means. I built out a tiered pricing scale because yoga should always be available to you—no questions asked.
If what I teach moves you, it’s because you already have this knowledge within you. Sure, you might not know the names of the poses or have a deep understanding of the ancient traditions of yoga—but what you know is yourself, better than anyone else. From that knowledge, we can all be teachers. We can each share a piece of ourselves and teach someone else what the world looks like from over here. Those are the most important lessons.
Thank you to all of my teachers—on and off the mat, in and out of the classroom. You inspire me.✨
I hope you have a great week ahead. And if you're American—vote! Today is the deadline to register to vote in Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas!
Let's flow together—but apart
Morning birds 60
A love letter to my early risers; those getting their move on before the 9-5 grind.
Tuesdays + Thursdays at 7.30am BST
Foundations 45
A nod to the curious; those who have never tried yoga before and want to know more.
Wednesdays at 12:30pm + 5:30pm BST
Sunday soul 75
An oldie with a twist; 60 minutes of powerful vinyasa and a hint of yin to close out the week.
Sundays at 5pm BST
Weekly writing prompt
Write a letter to a special teacher of yours—this could be your middle school science teacher, your soccer coach, or your art teacher. It could also be your parent, your best friend, your favorite aunt. Someone you met briefly or someone you've known for ages. Someone still in your life or not. Someone you've never met. What did they teach you? (15 minutes)
*maybe consider sending the letter to them ;)
Other musings
Natural, authentic, intuitive—the traps of vague words
Music for the four-legged
The Tiny Desk Concert that broke the record for most views in 25 min
The food of exiles
Shame-driven, band-aid, rebellion, numbing—the four types of dirty self-care
On repeat: it's always a good day when there's new Bon Iver
Miss class this week? Catch the audio recording here
