ask and you shall receive...

THURSDAY ENTRY -

i swear someone from bikrams staff must have read my blog yesterday because i got more inspiration, motivation and emotion than i asked for today...

EMMY CLEAVES
when i saw EMMY CLEAVES this morning - i actually clapped my hands together like a little child. YES. i knew i was going to have a strong and connected class. no more miss moody. emmy is bikrams most senior teacher - practicing for over 40 years. we dont know her exact age - but we are told she is at least 86 (she says she is older than god haha). and still doing triangle pose better than most 20 year olds. she is living proof of the power of this yoga. this woman brings so much knowledge to the hot room. everything must be just so. precision. precision. precision. going in to the posture as much as coming out of it.

"make sure your body is following the dialogue. do not go on auto pilot. be consciousness of your actions." 

JIM KALLETT
after class and break we prepared ourselves to listen to half moon dialogue again but instead we were surprised with a lecture session with JIM KALLETT. i sat there engrossed in him for almost 3 hours. i was writing everything he was saying down in my notebook. i couldnt keep up. every word - every sentence - was meaningful and powerful. 5 pages of notes. i wont share it all in detail but the one story that stuck with me was how bikram yoga was brought to the western world. its an amazing story that i started writing out here but it really is quite long - so i invite you to research it yourself :) all i will say is that he saved richard nixons life through the power of yoga and that is how he got a personal invitation - green card - to bring his practice to the united states.

a little bit about him (pulled from the world wide webbbb)

"Senior Bikram Yoga Instructor Jim Kallett became a Certified teacher during Bikram’s 5th ever teacher training  program in 1997.  Jim is one of the original and select few instructors that Bikram has hand-picked to represent him by conducting posture clinics and seminars around the world.  Due to his dedicated service, Jim is considered senior faculty of Bikram’s Yoga College of India – International Headquarters in Los Angeles, California, and Bikram’s famous Intensive Yoga teacher Training (since 1998).  With his extensive yoga knowledge and experience, Jim has been instrumental in assisting Bikram with Teacher re-certifications, and has served as judge at the past six International Yoga Asana Championship Finals in Los Angeles."

this teacher training is an extension of our own practice. its a self realization. how we practice is how we will teach. and how we teach is how we live our lives. how you practice, how you teach, and how you live your life is how your students will live theirs - in and out of the hot room. as teachers - we are examples. the yoga is not about us but about our students. the second we make it about ourselves we are limiting who we reach. this yoga is for EVERYONE. no discrimination. no judgment. no exceptions. no exclusions.

"the longer it takes, the luckier you are, because it lasts forever"

"when one has become successful at asana, pranayama can be perfected. with pranayama, the veil that hides illumination is lifted, and the mind is fit for meditation"

"we build insecurities for lack of self realization. never underestimate yourself" 

"yoga is food"

the lecture was followed with a strong and happy class taught by jim as well and then a quick dip in the pool with some of my girlies here at TT :) 

THURSDAY PM - floodgates have opened

we had 26 more students to go. then half moon would be done - and ahead of schedule. we were powering through the posture. so one by one they got on and off stage. boom. boom. boom. easy easy. but then one of the girls caught my eye and i swear i stopped breathing. she resembled my mom so much. or my mom resembled her. either way - i saw my mom in that girls face. her eyes, nose, smile.... the way she was talking. at first i just smiled to myself thinking happy thoughts as i normally do when reminiscing about her - but then it became harder and harder. tears were streaming down my face and before i knew it - i was out of my seat and rushing out the door as fast as possible. i just broke down. literally. sat on the couch and bawled. no breathing. i couldn't stop. two ladies came to console me and i couldn't get my words out to explain myself. they kept asking if the training was too hard on me. i finally blurted out my story. and then that made my break down even more. i was relieved when one of the staff came and just sat beside me with a box of tissues calming me down. i finally caught my breath and relaxed. i remember thinking of my friend leah - how she said this would all be coming out. i didn't really think it would because its been 6 years. but there are clearly more emotions hiding down there than i thought. and this is just the beginning...

MOVIE NIGHT- jodhaa akbar
as if i hadn't already overdosed enough on emotion - bikram had us watch the film jodhaa akbar. this movie was AMAZING. i would actually watch this back home on my own free time. we were up till 3 in the morning watching it - and i never closed my eyes or thought of the time once. sometimes i wonder what the point of these movies are - but each once has a different message that bikram wants us to take away from it. it also gives us an insight to their culture, traditions, beliefs, and overall way of life. and its so beautiful. there was so many great scenes in the movie last night - but this one was one of my favorites.  enjoy :)