“Yoga is not for the flexible, it’s for the willing.”
Yoga is really about discipline that comes from the self. One must be WILLING to put in CONSISTENT effort in practice to reap any benefits from Yoga. And this I only truly understand now, 4 weeks into practice.
I never thought I would be able to reach this level of flexibility and strength but I did! And it was through weeks of just trying, and failing, building strength, and trying again, to get us all here. It’s amazing to witness our growth and I’m just so proud of all of us, because we were all WILLING to put in the hard day. We each fought our own battles to stay committed to the mat and we have risen above the challenges like phoenix from ashes.
We were also all WILLING to totally suck and fail at teaching, in order to improve. Teaching is daunting at the beginning. To me, it’s like rock climbing. You start out feeling apprehensive, then mid-way through scaling the wall you may look down and fumble a bit or you may miss a step and sustain bruises from banging against walls (#truestory). But by the next time you’re on the wall, your bruises have healed, muscles grown stronger and you feel a little more confident, you know how to avoid the missteps and you’re used to the height.
It took me 3 times to feel more comfortable with teaching. But by the end of the 3rd time, I felt like teaching more. I successfully turned fear into enjoyment! Or rather, there’s enjoyment in a healthy amount of fear. I really enjoy leading a class (more than I expected), because each class is different and the need to react to unforeseen circumstances in class is a mental challenge that keeps me constantly engaged. I love that adrenaline!
Truly, when you’re willing, you’ll be surprised at what you’re capable of. I think everyone in class will agree with me on that. 🙂