Thank Yoga

When I saw that a yoga studio was opening up across the street from where I lived I thought ‘that’s where I’ll do yoga.’ When the studio opened I started taking classes, it was as simple as that.

There was nothing to it.

I began attending one class on a regular basis. It was a great class and so it was quite popular and also very crowded. I hated being jammed into that room but that didn’t stop me from going to class.

I don’t remember being awesomely satisfied with the way my body felt or profoundly impacted with a new outlook on life after I began practicing yoga. I do remember that it took a lot for me to miss a class. Going to yoga back then was a lot like attending grade school. It was as though the decision to go to class had been made for me, it was just something I did.

There was nothing to it.

I didn’t think I had anything interesting to say about how I started my yoga practice. I didn’t run into a detour on the road of life that directed me towards a shala. I didn’t have a profoundly positive experience in a yoga room until I had been practicing for well over a year. What could be less remarkable than thinking of doing something and then doing it?

What could be further from the truth?

My decision to practice yoga didn’t hit me like a bolt of lightning. I wasn’t caught off guard by the idea of going to the mat. For me it was a nearly non-noticeable cue, like understanding when it’s time to turn the page while reading a book. Being asked to recount the way I was called to the mat now appears to be a precious gift because in doing so I’ve been able to see what it looks like for me to trust my instincts. It has shown me that I don’t have to worry about what I should do, that I really do know what needs to be done.

That’s all there is to it.