Heart Full

We come to class, we roll out our mats, and follow our breath to find our center. This is the ideal. I usually get to step two, rolling out the mat. From there, it’s only a matter of time before I’m distracted. Hopefully, its the effort I’m putting in to sustaining the pose that’s distracting me, or maybe my determination to hold on that extra breath, and take my practice to the next level. But usually it isn’t. Sometimes, I’m distracted by the thong in full view, in front of me because the pants on the girl dip too low when she sits. Plummer style.

I’m bothered by this conundrum — should I tell her, I know I’d want to know! I figure, it’s OK, only I notice — since only i have the “backseat”. But then a man rolls out his mat next to me, and … as I predicted, he notices too, and now I feel REALLY obliged to tell her, but I don’t. Instead, I chew over this for what seems like hours. Thoughts like this, throw my practice off center. I chastise myself, I shouldn’t be so easily distracted. It’s not about how others look, or even how I look, this is my time to focus inwardly, and see what’s true.
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Pure Yoga, possibly the largest yoga studio in New York City, had a reputation even before it opened. Housing 6 studios, 80 classes a week of every imaginable kind of yoga, it’s an emporium not unlike Equinox, the zen central for work-out-aholics.

Its’ simple beauty is breathtaking. The well placed wood works, creamy colors, and babbling water fixtures, evoke calmness and balance. It’s not just classes offered here, clients can drink tea and graze peacefully in a central lounge, that is more than 10x the size of my two bedroom. They’re also personally assessed by experienced yogis who help them create a customized development plan. When it finally is time to go to class, mats are laid out with geometric precision, a puffy towel and cork block greet each practitioner. It’s 5-star luxury for a reasonable (Manhattan) membership price $140 /mo and $95 activation fee…. Activation fee, I hadn’t heard that in years, not since I signed up for Equinox.
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After an extended hiatus from yoga, I went back. Dealing with stress at work, and other sources of drama, I had lost sight of my practice, for what seemed like months. It’s easy to put off going to the mat, after a long day at work, sometimes a bubble bath was more appealing than sun salutations. I got tired of coming home at 9:30 – 10pm — too late to put anything together besides Lean Cuisine, and barely enough time spend with my better half. I was a certified teacher, I figured it was time to put some of my training to use and develop a home practice.

With all of my good intention, I never practiced at home. I did make dinners, but I also watched endless hours of TV. And the stress wasn’t getting any better, in fact it was getting worse. To cope, I started drifting back to my old habits. It was easy because I now had time to hang out with my old friends, and I always gave myself the excuse that it was temporary, I would be back soon.
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