Yesterday I was privileged enough to apart of the 'Kapani Stand Down' veterans retreat by taking the yoga and meditation class and what an absolute pleasure it was.
This yoga class to me, was exactly the essence of yoga and what we as teachers uphold. My area to teach in was as rustic as it could be. A colorbond shed and a concrete floor. No yoga mats. Unable to get the yoga mats in time for the first retreat, we improvised with towels and old blankets, and you know what, it didn't matter. It was perfect exactly as it was. Being a concrete floor and working with people who had never practiced yoga before, I modified the whole class to suit. Beginning with meditation and breath work, moving through to simple poses and ending with a deep meditation.
Afterwards, I stayed for the next few hours. Sat and talked with everyone, ate lunch and listened to all different stories.
Later, one of the veterans who was in the yoga class came up to me and told me that they had never practiced yoga before, but that they'd tried to "breath".... they had been given an app to practice breathing and breath work at home on their own on the laptop to reduce anxiety and stress. They'd tried and tried but just couldn't "get it" and gave up..... They told me that this was the first time they were able to quieten down and breath, and that they felt like they "just got it". In that short time they felt it working and wanted to do it more.
This right here is why I teach. To help people. This to me is the essence of yoga. To connect. To touch one person's life in anyway and make a difference, this is why I teach.You don't need a fancy yoga mat, or yoga clothes, or to be able to bend into any shape. Start wherever you are, with whatever you have.
My little yoga class was one small part of this retreat, as the photos will show. These people have bonded over 3 days of rustic adventure and fun and let me tell you, while I was there, there was a lot of laughter.
