Musings on Year One of teaching
I taught my last classes of 2022 over the past two days and honestly, I can’t wrap my head around it. It’s nearly impossible for me to believe that at this time last year, I still had 25 hours of teacher training left to complete. I've been teaching for less than a year? That can't be right, I've been teaching forever. Time isn't real, but it IS a funny thing.
200hr YTT home base
If you've shared classes with me, you've probably heard this: I have pretty serious stage fright. If you told me three years ago that I'd end up in a studio, guiding students through their practice, I probably would have laughed in your face.
I still get nervous before class, especially if it's a new studio for me and a group of yogis I don't yet know, but there's been a shift in the underlying feeling. I'm nervous, but not afraid. It's no longer anxiety about what I'm capable of, or if my students will like what I have to offer them. Now, it's more of an excited feeling - more a question of: Will they see what I'm trying to give? Will they feel the joy that I feel? Will I be able to convey to them how incredible they are, how I'm in absolute awe of them?
I've been practicing yoga for almost 20 years, but in the last two things have gotten Serious. I've broadened my scope to include so much more than just the physical asanas - I've always lived a life that aligns with the principles of yoga, but now I'm living intentionally. Meditation practice, volunteer work, driving my car, walking my dog - it's all yoga. Becoming aware of that fact and thinking of every part of my life as part of my practice has made me a more wholly integrated human.
the yoga nest study corner
Sharing yoga with my students is a huge part of my practice now, and it's one that has nurtured and enriched my life in so many unexpected ways. I feel a sense of obligation to my students to show up fully, and be present with them and with myself. As a community of human beings, we are ALL indebted to each other - on and off the yoga mat, in and out of the studio. I welcome this sense of obligation because we all have to rely on and take care of each other. I depend on my students, and they depend on me. (Hey, it's mutual aid! But that's another blog post for another day.)
This practice has given me so much, and being able to share those gifts with my students has been the single biggest source of joy in my year. I think about my students and all that we learned together and I'm filled with such a sense of wonder and gratitude. I'm so proud of us and of the ease and joy we found within ourselves and our bodies.
I can’t wrap this up without thanking Imani at Tru Yoga and Ali at Yoga 170. They’ve given me, (and so many others), a home for my practice, a community to support and be supported by. I will be grateful forever.
In 2023, I plan to continue participating fully in my life, and I hope you do too. We all come from the same star stuff - we're all the same chaotic, beautiful being. Your joy is mine, my contentment is yours and our potential is limitless. Everything is unfolding before us just as it should and there is peace in knowing that however we land, it's just right. All of it is yes.
💖 kass