A nice weekend where it all worked out

I was worried that my Friday early morning yoga would make me too sleepy to enjoy the show, the afternoon dragged, but once 4pm came around I woke up, grabbed a Burger at Euston before meeting Helen and Mel to go and see Hair, what a great night we had, though I was the only one of us who could actually remember the Vietnam war, well the end at least in the mid 1970′s, but I loved the music and the Maltesers, “Age of Aquarius” and “Let the sun shine in” have been spinning in my head ever since, it was surprisingly interactive, especially as we were up the back, the actors/singers came into the audience to hand out little flowers and encourage people to clap and sing, great fun with great company.

Saturday was a day off, it was Moon day after all and I had practiced 7 in a row, so my wrist appreciated the break and I got to have a lay in before going for a back and neck massage, which ended up being a session of undoing loads of knots in my shoulders and some sharp thumbs in the Piriformis, which was what I needed.

Sunday and back to the yoga and I am so glad to say back to YP as the train actually turned up on time, I was in the shala at 8.10, not bad going. Nice steady practice, time not to rush but to be able to stay in a pose a little longer if there felt like there was more space to move into. Not much adjustment today, just a quiet momentum. Managed to bind the hump poses Mari D on both sides and Supta K was a good one, I just know when it’s going to be and left alone to do it, even managing to lift up with my feet staying behind my head, until my wrist pointed out it had had enough of that game. Pasasana in the middle of my mat, no help from Mel or the wall, just a nice deep twist, balanced, even if my heals are not quite down and my fingers fleetingly touching, though nowhere near joining. It took a couple of goes at Urdva Dhanurasana to get a good one, but my wrist wasn’t objecting so I tried a couple more and walked in and then tried to push out of the chest towards my feet. I did some hang backs for a couple of minutes, hoping for help, I did some more but was getting tired so sat down into Paschimottanasana.

The trouble is if I keep playing hang backs for too long, I have run out of energy if assistance does arrive, but if I stand and wait, I get cold and my lower back starts to seize up, I regret now not giving it a minute or so more to see if Mel would have come over, or maybe she thought I wasn’t ready for it today. Rest of closing just happens, I try hard not to speed up so that I can get to my Pain au Raisin sooner, it had been a good practice and there was actually time for a decent Savasana.

I suddenly realised that my attitude and expectations of my practice have changed since Kino gave me Pasasana. I never ever thought I would enter 2nd series, even by one pose, but it seems to have stopped me striving and measuring, thinking of Primary in chunks, little humps like Triang Mukha, Marichyasana D and Supta Kurmasana to be got through before the terror of backbends and dropbacks. Practice now just happens, my mind is more often on or in the posture currently taking place, rather than thinking forward to one of “those” postures. No longer measuring means just accepting it for how it is, that one practice is rarely like the one before or the one to come, I am just happy for myself that I got on the mat and did it.

After practice at Patisserie Valerie, OMG is their giant Pain au Raisin wonderful with a pot of tea and some Apple juice, as those around choose the healthy looking Porridge and fruit. Its so nice just to chill out with yoga folk for a couple of hours, thanks to all those who made it such a lovely weekend.