I was fortunate enough to spend Sunday with Moses and Zeina, the selfless, giving beings behind the Green Bus Project and I Love Yoga. They are travelling for the 12 months, visiting yoga studios around the country sharing their gift of acro yoga and raising money for the Africa Yoga Project. Take a moment to read about what they are doing (http://www.greenbusproject.com/ ). It is inspiring and so refreshing to say the least.
The I Love Yoga Green Bus tour made a stop at Big Fish Yoga on Sunday.I kept thinking how much my kids would have loved to see this big green bus and to see what is possible when you think outside the box. Even though it was Superbowl Sunday, the chance to come to the acro-yoga workshop and "fly" was far more important to me than any game. When I signed up for this, I never really considered what was going to be involved. I just said "yes".....kind of a theme these days. I asked my friend to come with...to be honest, I didn't think that she would say yes given the fact that it was a big chunk of time on a Sunday and that she had never set foot in a yoga studio before. I was excited about the day, spending time with my friend and sharing yoga with her. To be honest, just getting myself to the studio that day was a feat beyond measure. I had to relinquish my kids to my in laws for the entire afternoon, which is hard for me, I'm not good at asking for help, and I had to pull myself together emotionally. It had been a rough couple of days for "e". I had been in my car crying in the parking lot, my eyes swollen shut with a feeling of despair....this is not how I wanted to go into this workshop, but looking back....I think it emptied me out so completely that I could fill up on the things I desperately needed.First let me mention that if you take someone to a yoga studio for the first time, it is probably wise to inform them that there may be a little chanting and a little deep breathing. I didn't do this...and let me tell you, the chanting, om-ing, and breathing on this day was off the hook! I thought my friend was going to literally run screaming from the building, but she was forced to remove her running shoes upon entering the studio (another fact that yours truly forgot to mention) and the door was locked, so she had to stay. We Om-ed for roughly 5 minutes....this is a long time, especially for a newbie. So, I'm thinking more about how she was feeling than how I was feeling which was a welcome distraction considering my state of mind and it actually made me giggle a little bit to see her reaction to all of these things. She even admitted to me later that she had to picture her dog, dying in the street to stifle her laughter. This makes me laugh even now thinking that all these people are laying around us trying to achieve harmony and peace and there she is, biting her cheek and picturing her dead dog.....classic.
Onward....We started the workshop with a "sharing circle". We each had to say our name and why we were there. Great...I wasn't sure that I could even speak without crying, much less provide a coherent explanation as to why I was there. My turn arrived and I started out OK...got my name out...then bam!...emotion overload. I think I said that I was feeling very vulnerable and scarred, but I mostly was trying to keep it together. Then it was my friends turn....oh boy...what is going to come out of her mouth....she is not one to mince words. She mentioned that the whole experience so far reminded her of her college days....again, I'm thinking oh boy....where is she going with this? Then she began to speak...for a decent amount of time about her life and how she always felt in chaos. I then thought that she needed this as much as I did, maybe more. We then began some communication exercises....you may be thinking, what does any of this have to do with "acro-yoga"? Well, I briefly thought the same thing, until I realized that it had EVERYTHING to do with acro-yoga. When you fly, your body is literally in the hands of your partner. Being able to express yourself and communicate is key to achieving balance... in acro yoga and also in life. After this, we were ready to fly!! We broke off into groups of 3, me my friend and Zeina's brother, Ram. I wanted to be the base first and fly my friend. No surprise here that this is exactly how I live my own life. I always see myself as the one to provide stability, the one that lifts everyone up, the one that is more comfortable being in control. This was no different on this day as I lay down on my mat and got ready to fly my friend. She was nervous....it was palpable. She was stiff and she wasn't breathing. It is essential when you fly to breathe and allow all your muscles to relax. It makes it much harder on your partner to hold you up if you are tensing your muscles.(Can you see how this relates to most relationships...especially marriages and partnerships?) After a couple of attempts, she was flying....terrified but flying. She slowly began to release, trusting my strength....something that I knew I could give her without fail. She stayed there for a good long time, allowing me to hold her up...effortlessly at times, suspended in this perfect moment of time. Then it was my turn to fly. I had gotten so good, in my life, at being the strength, that I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to surrender. Wow....the feeling that I felt when I gave it all away (all the struggling, all the expectations, all the baggage) just overtook my entire being. For a moment I closed my eyes and lost all concept of time and space. It was just, me....broken wings and all....relearning to fly.
This is a picture of Ram flying me. I cant tell you how much I surprised myself. I naturally went limp and just allowed myself to me moved and molded and held up.
Just hanging out....flying....it is like an out of body experience if you allow yourself to let go. I got to fly Ram too! My strength and confidence surprised me again...I felt strong and was able to let him fly for quite a while. Moses came by and patted my leg as I was flying Ram and said "Awesome, you are strong". And in my head, I answered "I know." This was quite profound. I was finally admitting my strength ...maybe not out loud, but at least to myself. My friend got to base me as well, but she was mentally fighting against her "tight hammies" and her "inflexibility". Both things that Moses pointed out were NOT the problem at all...it was her inability to breathe and to let go of some of the tension she was creating...hmmmmm, interesting. He made the point that strength was something that she had a lot of, she just had to use it in a way that worked for her. Awesome. I think we both learned a lot about ourselves and how we react to others, what is natural and what we try to force in our lives. The workshop ran a little long and I was starting to worry about picking my kids up in a timely manner so I probably lost out on some deep relaxation as we retreated to savasana. I also desperately wanted to shop the I Love Yoga clothing line that Moses and Zee were promoting, but really had to go. When I asked if they would be back with their clothing, Zee said that she wasn't sure. Then what she said next summed up the core of their being. She said, "Just take what you want and mail us a check....that is totally fine." Wow....just wow...how refreshing, giving, trusting and authentic. This is what I got filled up on at acro-yoga. Namaste. 
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