Yoga Teacher Training

It's been a long time goal of mine to be a yoga teacher. Now that I've taken a basic training, my goal is that much closer to actualization. I always thought that being a yoga teacher would be years down the road. But the opportunity arose, and the timing was perfect. I feel really lucky.

The training was outstanding. Everyday twice a day for five days I did the hardest yoga class I've ever taken. The teacher had us holding poses for a long time, and was putting us in advanced poses. We did 8-10 wheels in the morning. The practice room varied from a cool 85 degrees Fahrenheit on up to 103 degrees Fahrenheit. At those temperatures when anyone walked by me I could feel a refreshing breeze from their passing.

The training made me physically stronger and more bendy. I'm in a better emotional state post training too. I feel more open, and less expectant. As cheesy as it sounds, I do feel I had a significant breakthrough. Lately I've been feeling stagnant in my growth. I knew thought patterns weren't serving me, but was having a hard time letting go. My job is helping me grow, but the process feels slow and arduous. I wanted more faster, I could see where I wanted to be, but was frustrated that I wasn't there. During the yoga training I just opened up, one pose at a time. Literally and figuratively. I'm not "there" now, and growing never stops, but it's gratifying to feel I've made significant progress.

I'm really excited. I think that spiritually I need a yoga training or retreat annually. I'll be keeping my eyes and ears open. I'll be saving for it. My idea is to save the money that I earn from teaching yoga as well as the money I would have spent on taking yoga classes and invest that into future trainings.

The next growth opportunity is on the horizon. In order to do the yoga training I had to take a double off followed by a double on. I'm diving into the field on Wednesday, and I'll resurface on August 14th. I'm nervous about two weeks in the field, but I know I'll be tougher afterwards.

Translation

When I was twelve I moved to Germany, last shift was hard, unexpected changes at work. The previous is a very brief summary of the convoluted series of events, that led me to only work four out of 8 days in the field. This was a week that reminded me that all things are interconnected, and that the universe always provides healing.

My time in the field was brief. I had the opportunity to work with high functioning students, and to experience the field as a bonus staff, so there was less pressure. It was so refreshing after the shitty week award. After my time in the field I got to go home for a day. I used my free day to study German, because the following two days I spent helped a Swiss-German family through graduation festivities.

Since my translation services were needed, I had the unusual opportunity to sit in on the group therapy that the parents have before their children arrive. It was really wonderful to interact with the parents, and see a little bit deeper into the lives of my students. Seeing the students graduate and move on is the biggest reward. It isn't often that staff get a chance to see students at the end of their wilderness therapy journey. It's powerful to hear how the students have changed, how grateful the parents are, and in the end to be reminded that the work I do is important.

Being at graduation was a gift. The additional bonus of translating was also huge. I learned a lot about what I do and don't know in German. As a translator, the work I was doing had a direct and immediate impact. It felt really good to be needed in a way that gave me energy, and related so directly to my goal of being a German/French teacher. I know for a fact that the mom had a much better and more inclusive experience because I was there to help. It feels good.

Shitty Week Award

Yep, it’s a real thing at work. I’ve worked at Red Cliff for six months now, and nobody at my shift has received the award since I started. In honor of a tremendous shift, the names of my co-staff and I were immortalized on a plaque that features a very realistic fake poop. We also got a lunch gift card at the end of shift. 

 This last week we had a group of seven students two of which were high supervision. High supervision students are demarcated with a special outfit called a red suit. Staff has to shadow them to use the bathroom, and the red suit has to be wrapped in a tarp at night. The tarp allows the staff to hear and feel if the student is trying to get away or if they are hurting themselves. 

Our group had three staff, one more than the usual. But once during the week we had five staff to seven students. All five staff were imperative.  While we had five staff, one student required three staff to manage. Another time base brought us two extra staff, so that the two usual staff would have time to file incident reports. I filed six incidence reports this week. It’s best not to publish what the incidence reports entailed, but one of them required base to send an extra staff who could stay awake all night. 

It was totally exhausting. Every night I went to bed with a stress headache, and by shift change tears were free flowing. I’m sad and disappointed about some things that went down this week. But I’m also proud. This is one of three memorable shifts that allows me to see that I’m capable of more than I think I am. I also know I could not have handled this shift when I first started working at Red Cliff. 

It’s easy for me to be my own best self when conditions are ideal. I want my own best self to become so ingrained and so habitual that even in the worst of times I maintain a deep sense of gratitude, happiness, love, and patience. 

I think it’s good to be taken to the edge of my emotional and or physical capacity for short intense bursts every few months. It makes me stronger. I also have the impression that if I don’t have a veritable challenge every now and then that I could become weaker. I don’t think I can get to my own best self without these struggles.