We changed the Level 2 Monday night Vinyasa class to a Level 1 so more people would have an opportunity to take it. There were only three of us last Monday, but I am hoping more students will show up to experience this challenging and calming style of flowing meditation.
My own experience was startling because I realized I hadn't taken a traditional yoga class in months--too busy concentrating on getting my teaching practice up and running to bother. And how sad is that? Daniella put us through our paces. I was the only one to have had any experience with vinyasa so she broke down the poses. After warming us up she moved into showing us the basic sequence of Sun Salutation, made up of 12 linked poses. It felt great but I confess that down dog is a challenge for me (between being fat and having iffy shoulders I struggle to stay in down dog. Not only do I have a lot of weight to hold up but neck surgery a few years ago trashed my neck and shoulder on the left. Should I even mention that I have rotator cuff issues?) By the time we reached the end of our final salutation, I was happy. One might say the endorphins had kicked in right about then. From the Sun Salutation we moved into a lovely vinyasa: Warrior 2, Side-Angle to Triangle and back to Warrior 2. I've always loved this flow because it makes me feel balanced and strong, two traits I desperately crave.
I walked out of class feeling happy and sore, challenged yet invigorated. I slept well that night . . . so thank you, Daniella.
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
The Moon Is Blue
Report on Thursday, May 31st's Blue Moon Salutation
From the website www.infoplease.com I found a few factoids about blue moons. "There are in fact two definitions for a blue moon . . . a blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month." That one is obvious. Here's another, "the blue moon is the third full moon in a season that has four full moons." Okay, that one is more problematic because it has something to do with early Christians and how they mapped out their holy days. Appropriately, blue moons come around once in a blue moon: "Over the next twenty years there will be a total of 17 blue moons . . . " and the last time we had a blue moon was on July 31, 2004. Another interesting thing is, "the rare phenomenon of two blue moons . . . occurring in the same year happens approximately once every 19 years. 1999 was the last time . . . in January and March."
For our class--the first Chandra Namaskara (Moon Salutation)--11 people showed up to celebrate. I was nervous but I managed to calm down once we started. I warmed us up and then moved into the vinyasa, trying my best to offer options for the beginner as well as the more seasoned yoginis. We had two women, both long time practitioners in the Iyengar style, who stationed themselves up front and I found it reassuring and grounding to have them on either side of me, embracing me like parentheses. We moved into namaste hands and up into our crescent moon then half moon and out into a loud goddess pose and 5-pointed star. From there we moved into triangle, pyramid and lunge before coming into a wide legged forward bend and a squat (representing the new moon). We then reversed our poses, following the path of the moon and back into namaste hands. We raised big energy and laughed a lot before cooling down and falling into savasana and the bliss of stillness.
From my perspective, it was an empowering class and I look forward to creating a community of "moon sallies" each month on the full moon.
See you on June 30th @ 3:30 for the next class!
From the website www.infoplease.com I found a few factoids about blue moons. "There are in fact two definitions for a blue moon . . . a blue moon is the second full moon in a calendar month." That one is obvious. Here's another, "the blue moon is the third full moon in a season that has four full moons." Okay, that one is more problematic because it has something to do with early Christians and how they mapped out their holy days. Appropriately, blue moons come around once in a blue moon: "Over the next twenty years there will be a total of 17 blue moons . . . " and the last time we had a blue moon was on July 31, 2004. Another interesting thing is, "the rare phenomenon of two blue moons . . . occurring in the same year happens approximately once every 19 years. 1999 was the last time . . . in January and March."
For our class--the first Chandra Namaskara (Moon Salutation)--11 people showed up to celebrate. I was nervous but I managed to calm down once we started. I warmed us up and then moved into the vinyasa, trying my best to offer options for the beginner as well as the more seasoned yoginis. We had two women, both long time practitioners in the Iyengar style, who stationed themselves up front and I found it reassuring and grounding to have them on either side of me, embracing me like parentheses. We moved into namaste hands and up into our crescent moon then half moon and out into a loud goddess pose and 5-pointed star. From there we moved into triangle, pyramid and lunge before coming into a wide legged forward bend and a squat (representing the new moon). We then reversed our poses, following the path of the moon and back into namaste hands. We raised big energy and laughed a lot before cooling down and falling into savasana and the bliss of stillness.
From my perspective, it was an empowering class and I look forward to creating a community of "moon sallies" each month on the full moon.
See you on June 30th @ 3:30 for the next class!
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