Yoga Teacher Training- Weekend Two
Going into the second YTT weekend, I was much more stressed than I wanted to be. I had diligently practiced and read, but I had also traveled and solo parented. Instead of going into the weekend feeling at ease, I felt like a tightly wound ball of yarn. Thankfully, I unfurled over the weekend, which I'm thankful for.
Over the weekend, we learned more anatomy, broke down some key poses, practiced meditation, and flowed together. We learned more history and philosophy of yoga and discussed our key takeaways from the weekend. And, as our homework from the previous weekend had suggested, we took turns leading a group through a classical sun salutation. Like the first weekend, it was very, very full, but because I knew what to expect from the weekend, it somehow felt less overwhelming.
One of my takeaways from the weekend is the importance of meditation. When we discussed and practiced meditation on Friday evening, I had been under a lot of stress. My husband had been traveling for a week, and I was solo parenting and the kids had been antsy and vibrating with energy. I had taken them to the pool that day to get their energy out, which it had, but I was left feeling depleted and tired and stressed. We discussed all of the different types of meditation, and practiced open awareness meditation and guided focus meditation. I was immediately struck by how at ease I felt after both practices, and I realized just how much stress I had been adding to my situation. Yes, it was stressful, but equally important was the fact that I was stressful. I amplified the stress by reacting instead of responding. Even just a few minutes of focused breathing can bring us back to ourselves, into our true nature of ease and peace, so that we can respond rather than react.
When we led each other through sun salutations, I was struck by how nervous I felt when I got the chance to teach. I used to teach a high school classroom, so I thought that muscle would just fire again when I called upon it, but I found my muscles and voice shaking as I moved through the sun salut and called out the movements along with the breath sequence. Yoga teachers make it look easy. And while it may be simple, it's definitely not easy.
Our homework for next time is to continue our daily practice, meditate each day for at least ten minutes, and to read the first twelve sutras from the Yoga Sutras of Putanjali. I have done pretty well, but admittedly, there have been days when I have only done five minutes of meditation, but on days when I sit for longer, I see a big difference in my mood and my ability to stay calm in the chaos. I have found that I really like mantra meditation, so I'm trying to explore that more. Mantra meditations give my mind something to really hold on to while I let everything else go, and so far, I have practiced the Om Mani Padme Hum and Om Shanti mantras. Both have been beneficial to me.
Consistent practice and this training have helped me to be more comfortable with change. COVID has once again changed things. Masks are once again required at certain places. Teachers have returned while others have left. And as someone who historically has trouble meeting change, I have surprisingly accepted these changes with ease thinking to myself, "que sera, sera, what will be will be." Life is change and what will be will be. Just like the body and breath, yoga yokes those two concepts together, and I'm just so grateful, despite the madness of the world situation, to be where I am right here, right now.