A few days ago I posted a link about the Montreal Botanical Garden on facebook and it got me thinking. Why do we do yoga in a studio? Logically, I understand the convenience, the controlled environment, the privacy. But, my best yoga experiences have been beyond the studio walls.
Imagining yoga in the Botanical Garden reminded me of an outdoor yoga experience with my roommate and friend, Erin. Erin is the kind of girl who never breaks a sweat and has perfectly gorgeous bob at all time (but loves the outdoors. She has a rockin body but I rarely see her workout (though she did share with me her killer morning core workout) . She's naturally super flexible (and worked hard to refine it with years of dance and color-guard). She lives a pretty serene life. Whether or not her life is really so serene (no one's is) she is fantastic at making it look like it is. Erin is good at yoga because her mask of serenity isn't a mask; it's her intrinsic way of life that is simply visible to onlookers in her external appearance.
So, when Erin said "Let's go to park and do yoga!", I said "Yay! Let's go look serene!".
Public yoga sounded a little uncomfortable but I had a feeling if I did it with her I could harness some grace and try to act natural. Once we began, I realized I didn't have to act. She and I did different flows but fed off each others energy, focus, and pose improvisation. We positioned ourselves in a little alcove of trees and totally embraced every minute of our practice.
Erin and I are good yoga buddies because we encourage each other with words and vibes that are always positive and never competitive. Even if we are very different people, yoga is a common ground between us and we meet here completely uninhibited. We can glance at each other during our practice not to see how far we're stretching but to see how we're stretching; it's to look for a new idea, not a better one.
Do you and a friend have a favorite place to do yoga? Shoot me an email at darlingdrishti@gmail.com or tell me on facebook or twitter!
The light in me honors the light in you! Namaste.
Dianna
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