THE SINGING BOWL WILL BE SINGING AGAIN ~ FRIDAY 21ST JUNE ~
We have been in an interesting position of late; we have had to hand certain things over ‘emotionally’; we’ve had to relax into ‘receiver’ mode for support. Times past this would have been an extraordinarily uncomfortable position for us to be in but we knew we must just go with temporary state. Besides, we really didn’t have the energy to resist.
PEOPLE CAME THROUGH FOR US IN LOTS OF UNIQUE AND DIFFERENT WAYS FOR WHICH WE ARE VERY GRATEFUL; some offers we simply could not accept because we NEVER once lost perspective in this scenario, we weren’t homeless and we weren’t hungry ~ we are fit and able people able to help ourselves, but they touched us and motivated us to do more for ourselves because we wanted to be back with you on the terms we had with you previously, never looking to you for anything more than enabling us to facilitate your practice and growth. YES we frequently felt ‘overwhelmed’ and tired but even in the uncertainties of the first 3.5 months even as we were dealing with all the ‘surrounding’ issues and our studio still wasn’t getting any attention we were getting glimpses of a future and we knew we were simply in the middle of a story of survival of a ‘business’ that would very soon just be woven into our interesting history’s tapestry. Yes for six months now we have looked in the direction of our practitioners in a slightly different way; you giving us the opportunity to teach, keeping us focused and sane, taking our mind of our worries, us hoping desperately that practitioners would come and keep coming because every class participant effort whether using up old credits or buying new were giving our spirits a lift and helping us pay the bills (including paying for 2 locations); yes, I have only myself to blame for my stupid mistake business continuity insurance wise; it being hopelessly inadequate because I never revisited the amount from the first year we opened 2011; I would urge all small business owners to double check their business interruption policy; because it is tremendously stressful ‘surviving’ without that help; we will be personally feeling the financial effect of the insurance cover ‘rejected’ element (the wall), my mistake (bc-underinsured) and the drop in attendance for some time to come.
We would like to say we sailed through this time with grace but sadly no 🙂 . Yes there was definitely validation of our broader Yoga practices and there was challenges to evolve and grow but we definitely had our moments where lower mind (worry) ruled! Oh! The human condition; we are so tired of that lower mind rearing up, it has so truly exhausted us that we have had a word with it and it is gone! Yay.
WE ARE SO GRATEFUL to the people in their particular expertise/businesses who got us back to where we are so efficiently when we got past the initial obstacles. We can’t thank them enough! NIG Loss adjuster / BSC / Ormer / Aston. And of course all those that they sub-contracted to, although not mentioned (where do you stop!) we know who they were and what they did. Those on the job were phenomenal in their crafts! We just can’t praise them enough! We are so grateful to one other particular practitioner who was in the background and we know they are modest for naming purposes; but their support and selfless gifting of their professional expertise in an area where we felt out of depth was tremendous and absolutely priceless; we may not be able to return in kind but we do not forget, we will pay it forward.
AND HERE WE ARE A LITTLE WISER. We had thought Yoga Matters was created and existed (albeit only partly) as a vehicle to help us achieve OUR life ‘goal’ if you like of being better Yogis which encompasses serving and giving (it being a business that is conducive to this ~ as Muhammad Ali said “service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth”); we would just take what we needed to survive (salary); hey! We never set out to take over the Yoga world 🙂 . If it were that simple all tied up in that ‘simply serving’ bow; we wish!! We also believed that the space existed as a sanctuary for YOU to experiment, feel nurtured, transform and grow and we so want to be part of your journey, to share your joy in your practice, to be your witness on the way. And yes from a Yogic perspective that ‘want’ is probably not ‘Yogi’ but we indulge ourselves here 🙂 . Anyway. HERE WE ARE AT THE TRUTH: Yoga Matters exists because of YOU ~ AS IT ALWAYS HAS, first and foremost and WE are just the lucky people you chose to facilitate your needs. There is so much we want to say to you but just can’t find the words. These past months you have shown us ways to CHANGE our broader Yoga practices and how we instruct/teach. YOU have again taught us about COMPASSION, LOYALTY AND KINDNESS. This makes this recent period in Yoga Matters studio, instructors and students’ life EXTRAORDINARILY SPECIAL.
WE ARE SENDING OUT OUR GRATITUDE TO THE PEOPLE WHO TEACH US YOGA
Om Om Om ~ No one ever got poor from giving