• Home
  • Oprah John Friend & Desi, Brene Brown and more
  • 2014, 2016, 2015 and 2012
  • A Day in the Life & Pay Attention
  • Reflections from the Past
  • Guatemala Trips
  • Springtime & Falltime
  • Yamas and Niyamas--the eastern Way of the Commandments
  • ClairVision Meditation Group
  • Interviews
  • New
  • Amy's Story
  • Juice Cleanse
yoga blog

Storytelling from on and off the mat

Don't let your occupation define you

9/30/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
It was 1988 and adult life seemed to get easier after a few years into my marriage.  We were so young but independent from our parents and homeowners by the age of 24.  We had a quaint home in upstate NY.  Our neighbors were older than us even though they had kids around the same age as our daughter. We often would get together for beer and a barbeque. I have one memory of Keith a muscular jovial guy with a moustache and full head of hair bouncing around our airy, blue-stenciled kitchen while his pretty blonde wife looked on.  Another father stood tall in the corner of the room and in retrospect he seemed something out of midcentury novel in look and poise.  He was gnawing on a piece of something, as I stared transfixed by his mouth thinking about his false teeth, he barely 40.
 
My gaze then went over to Keith a playful man as I challenged, “I could take you down” I wanted to practice take down restraints, something I had learned that day in training for my job on the psych ward where I worked at a local hospital.  Keith goofy at-heart worked outside in construction jobs for the city and always seemed game for anything. He was the first to grab the roman candles at a Fourth of July party hoisting them around precariously.  Running around crazy after the kids and dogs. That night he looked on, yawned and smiled at me.  I went forward and he had me twisted in the air in a pick up hold before I could blink.  I was speechless.  I couldn’t believe how fast he was and how he had me in a locked up restraint before I could move.  I learned that day more than restraint training. I learned to never under estimate someone’s strength or speed even if they are benign in appearance and never, over estimate your own ability even in a playful situation.  The other thing that I learned was a lesson taught to me by Robert Redford, a good-looking stately neighbor. “Be careful what you do,” Robert warned at the gathering as he looked at me across the table later that night wagging his finger at me, “Kris, if you work too long in psych, well you don’t want to become like a psych patient or too like a psych nurse.”  He went on and added, “My kindergartener teacher she retired from the profession and I visited her once and she was, well, she treated me like I was still in kindergarten.” 
 
At the time, I looked at him oddly thinking it was a strange thing to say and I didn’t understand the full meaning of his words, until a few years later.  Not long after, Robert a nurse himself had a nervous breakdown.  It was after he took a job running the local psychiatric facility.  His wife called me to their home to help her with him, me a psych nurse and all.  He had abruptly stopped sleeping and had become paranoid and delusional.  I remember him ushering me into his bedroom closet, locking the door behind me.  He told me the bizarre thoughts he was having.  Some of them had to do with me, and my marriage.  His wife and I were petrified by his uncharacteristic behavior.  His psychotic break so abrupt, it seemed to come out of nowhere.  I guess when you have a name like Robert Redford AND run a psych ward well then you are just asking for trouble in the delusional category.  Fortunately he snapped out of it a few days later but not before the lesson was etched securely in my mind. 

0 Comments

Yoga Training in 2002

9/24/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
​YogaFit  Level 1 
My assignment back in 10/3/02
 
My Eight Week Classes started on July 2 in my home.  I placed a flying in my neighborhood and told friends that I would be offering yoga in my home.  Six women signed up to join me for the classes. 
 
All six women except one continued for the eight week session.  The first week I gave to each a questionnaire on yoga to gauge their knowledge and future commitment level.  All but one had done yoga in the past and all but the one were unsure if they would continue to practice after the eight weeks.
 
Each week we focused on something different.   During the first week a few of the participants commented on how difficult some of the poses are.  One woman did not realize that yoga is a workout and thought it would be mostly relaxation and breathe work. 
 
During the last class I asked in a second feedback sheet what pose they liked least and most.  It was interesting to note that they all had very different responses for different reasons.  I was glad to note that in the first form handed out most were not sure if they would continue with yoga but on the last day most commented that they would continue.
 
I enjoyed the process of teaching women who had never practiced yoga before and (I) learned from each of them.  One of the most meaningful things I learned was each person is different and their needs/likes/dislikes are very individual.  I also learned that with beginning students you need to teach, not just do.  You need to reassure, give frequent cues and walk around to each person. 
 
I am looking forward to my level 2 training this weekend and learning to give hands on direction during class.  Thanks for allowing me the opportunity to offer yoga to my community.  Namaste.


0 Comments

Liz and Maura

9/9/2016

0 Comments

 
Picture
 Our Yoga Teacher tells us today to think of someone we appreciate.  He says it can be a friend, teacher or student...I thought of Liz (and Maura.)  

I taught yoga to Liz years ago.  She came to my classes faithfully whenI lived in Philly.  

In honor of today's theme and appreciation of Liz I am posting a letter I wrote to Maura (my granddaughter) a few years ago about Liz..  Maura was five at the time. 


Dear Maura,
Poppy and I are so happy to have you in our life! 

About a year before you were born I was teaching yoga to a bunch of friends in Philadelphia at a place called Breathe (Moyo).  I distinctly remember that day; class was finished and I was walking over to the stereo to get my music out and got this message from you that you were planning on being born soon!  You tapped me on the shoulder and said “remember me?  You will see me soon--I am going to be born and Katie is going to be my mom!!”  I looked at my friend Liz to tell her about this very special granddaughter that I was going to have one day.  She smiled and didn’t really know what to say but seemed happy for me!! And now you are here, 

I want to tell you about my friend Liz who is wonderful too!  She hasn’t had an easy adult life.  She is one of those people who always smiles even though her life can be a struggle.  I get the sense that her life started easy enough out in California.  California is at the other end of the United States from where you live in Boston! It is usually sunny out there!  Liz is smart and she went to a school called Berkley—a hippie-type school where a lot of really smart people go. 

Anyway…she met this handsome tall quiet man named Sam and they fell in love and got married and they moved to Philadelphia.  Sam is a chemist and makes pharmaceuticals—(pharmaceuticals are things your mom and daddy sell.)  After a few years they had a boy named Pete.  Pete is a nice boy but very sick.  He didn’t have many friends at school.  One day he came over to play with Uncle Liam.  Uncle Liam liked him and they played together again at Sam’s house.  They didn’t go to the same school though so didn’t really see each other beyond those two times. 

Pete is a great kid but he got picked on at school because he has a disease that makes him have to go to the bathroom a lot.  He has colitis which gives him lots of stomachaches and makes him thin.  Kids don’t always understand sicknesses at school.  Pete is doing better now.  He is in college and really enjoying it and making a lot of friends, just like Uncle Liam.  I am sure that he will grow up to be a nice like Liz and Sam.  They also have a daughter Caroline. 

Can you believe that Caroline has more problems than her brother Pete!  Lots more problems!!  Caroline was born with a disease that affected her brain and spinal cord (her back).  She can’t think the same way that most people do and cannot walk or talk.  She needs help going to the bathroom and her mom needs to help her eat too.  She is a happy girl though.  Liz smiles when she takes care of her and when she looks at her she tells her she is beautiful which is amazing because she needs to be very patient with Caroline and take care of all her needs and Caroline doesn’t always look beautiful!! 
​
Liz is a pretty amazing friend (her birthday is tomorrow!!) and even though I was Liz’s yoga teacher she taught me way more than I could have ever taught her.  I hope you meet a friend like Liz someday!
Love,
Gaia
Ps I am glad we are in this life together!!
​
(My practical daughter remarked  laughingly that it was a strange letter not meant for a five year old. But somehow I think Maura got it because she's pretty amazing too.)


0 Comments
    Picture

    Author

    Blogger, yogi, nurse

    Archives

    February 2018
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    April 2016

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
  • Oprah John Friend & Desi, Brene Brown and more
  • 2014, 2016, 2015 and 2012
  • A Day in the Life & Pay Attention
  • Reflections from the Past
  • Guatemala Trips
  • Springtime & Falltime
  • Yamas and Niyamas--the eastern Way of the Commandments
  • ClairVision Meditation Group
  • Interviews
  • New
  • Amy's Story
  • Juice Cleanse