So folks, I’m psyched! After an amazing weekend in Brighton (I even got a glimpse of their naked bike ride!! Woohooo (ok more than a glimpse đ possibly more than I care to remember) I am so full of it I wouldnât know where to start to tell ye stuff, I got great value out of my weekend away…  Here is one little story from my experiences there. Like many I have thought the word AWESOME can be a little mis/over used and so day-to-day I donât use it myself BUT for the purposes of this piece here it is entitled ~
âI AM AWESOME YOGIâ
Normally I donât âthinkâ anything when I am practicing. I make checks, adjustments according to what the teacher is saying, I have breath awareness; but for the most part I am in âYoga zoneâ, but when Mary Jarvis said âYouâre not allowed to think anything. UNLESS you are thinking âI am AWEsomeâ â I thought âmmm thatâs interesting, Iâm gonna try THATâ cos MJ said. And so there I was âBridget Jonesâ stylie âI am awesome Yogi, I AM awesome Yogi, look at me I am AWESOME Yogi holding posture, oh HEâs out, oh SHEEEâs out⊠oh God end⊠please MJ finish, I am awesome YOGI, God its hot in here, when are you gonna finish MJ, I am AwesâŠâ MJ goes âWAITâ⊠Me: I am awesome Yogiâ. MJ âWAITâŠâ pause. ME âyou gotta finish thisâ MJ âWAITâŠâ long pause. Me smug: âlook that teachers outâ MJ: âI can wait for youâŠâ me: âyeah Iâm awesomeâ. MJ: âTWENTYââŠâŠâŠâŠ. đ . Thatâs it. Iâm done đ I come out laughing. That was the FIRST set of FIRST backward bend in the FIRST 2.5hr class folks.
THE MORAL OF THIS STORYÂ ~Â You know I encourage positive affirmations and mantras in class to act as a shield against negative thinking and I will continue to encourage them. The âI am awesomeâ affirmation will work when you are a beginner but eventually it (or your choice of mantra) will fall away the more you practice you wonât need it. It was a good experiment for me, I added it in where I didnât need it and, as you see, it allowed other naughty monkey like thoughts to ride in on its back. Note that Mary said first âYOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO THINK ANYTHING.â If you are new and thinking is uncontrolled, make choices about what you are thinking, use positive words about yourself that donât involve âI suckâ.
Remember, your local friendly Bikram teacher has a higher vision for you than possibly you have for yourself.
We see the future of your posture, your true body that you might not believe for yourself just yet. Right now give yourself a kind thought and remember âI AM AWESOME YOGIâ.
Namaste ~ Trisha
June ’14