Last Saturday my diary was empty and I was looking forward to a quiet day after the first week back at work.
I started with an 8am yoga class, my regular yin class I've been attending as a student for many years as a relaxing start to the weekend. But the teacher was feeling a bit more dynamic than usual and mixed it up with plenty of trikonasana, plank holds and down dogs. So I had to adjust my expectations a bit, the practice was a bit more energising than usual and it helped me to appreciate the a super guided meditation at the end to welcome in the New Year.
I'd planned to go for a walk with a friend immediately after and it was a cold and misty day. We grabbed a take away coffee and set off to Box Hill.
On the way I got a text from another friend. She had just come back from a long flight and was looking for a stretchy yoga class to help loosen up her back and shoulders. Another unexpected surprise! We hadn't seen each other for a while and I'd never taught her before. I suggested late afternoon and we set it up.
I decided to take it a bit easy on the walk as I'd need to keep some energy for the class. We avoided the infamous Box Hill steps and steep inclines and had a beautiful morning discussing how we are adjusting our yoga practices for our changing bodies and needs and shared news about interesting workshops, books, our plans and hopes for the year ahead. It finished off with home made cakes form the national trust shop, perfect.
As soon as I got back home, I put away the muddy boots, and put together some sequences that I thought might work for an afternoon of yin, then tidied up the Studio Room a bit. I was good to go. I checked my emails quickly and oops, I discovered that the workshop in London I thought I had booked for Sunday evening was actually going to be held tonight! It was entirely my mistake in putting in the wrong date in my diary. I quickly checked out transport (the trains were not running due to engineering works again) to see if I could still make it. I could, but it would be a bit of a rush.
My friend arrived for her class. We discussed the plan for the next hour and a half and settled in to some deep hip and shoulder releasing work finishing up with my new favourite pose - cat's tail, giving both hip and shoulder stretch together. We closed with a few savasana adjustments, guided relaxation and gratitude for our shared love of yoga and friendship.
When we had said our goodbyes, I grabbed my coat, ran for the tube and train with just 3 minutes to spare and arrived at the workshop across town on time. It was a magical space. Fairy lights twinkled across the ceiling, nests of mats, bolsters, blocks and blankets were placed in a circle around an alter of flickering candles. And we were greeted with hot tea and offers of even more blankets and eye pillows to make ourselves comfortable. I wasn't sure what to expect, I hadn't been to this class before and didn't know the teacher, although I had read one of her books on Womb Yoga. What followed was amazing. We started with Yoga Nidra, a very long practice involving singing and music, that I had never experienced before. I lay swaddled in blankets and still wearing my beanie hat, and it was blissful. After the Yoga Nidra was a unique series of mudra based moves and chanting, including encouragement to yawn as loud as possible. The invitation was to follow the guidance or do whatever felt right, or do nothing at all "if you are in a yoga class and everyone is doing the exact same thing, just leave" was the advice. Yes, this was my kind of yoga. We greeted each other in the 20 or so class and learned where everyone had travelled from. My 60 minute journey across London seeming very short and easy by comparison with some. By 9.30pm we were done and I wrapped up again in gloves and scarf to brave the biting wind for the journey home, which thanked to London's integrated transport network was actually seem less with less than 10 minutes to wait between connections.
So there it was, my quiet relaxing Saturday which flowed into 5 hours of different yoga styles, 2 hours of woodland walking and 2 hours of uncertainty around public transport. It was unexpected but I enjoyed every minute of it, appreciating life unfolding as it should and in spite of my best plans.
If the Yoga Nidra and Womb Yoga sounds interesting to you find out more at http://www.wombyoga.org/events-and-courses. My private classes can be held at weekends at times to suit. Book here