There is so much we do with our friends…laugh with them, break bread with them, in NYC especially, share a bottle (or more!) of wine with them. Rarely however do we share our practice with them…
Yoga has always been about the individual and their practice. How one feels on the mat, what the intention is and the goals. That will always be the most important aspect of yoga as well as Swanand Yoga’s primary focus but there is something to be said for sharing your practice with the people you love…
I recently had the opportunity to attend an amazing class with Sonal when my friends were visiting fromGermanyandIndia. At first, my friends were making excuses- jetlag, huge to-do list in NYC, no time…but I told them the class will help with the jetlag and also stretch them out after the arduous traveling. After a little more debate, they finally caved in…
Side by side, we did breathing exercises, stretched and even meditated. The entire class I knew my friends’ presence in the room, just like I know the teacher’s presence but the practice was still mine…for the entire seventy five minutes, it was “me” time.
Shivasna was over and I slowly sat up only to be greeted by my friends’ smiles and huge hugs- they never felt so relaxed after a yoga class. My friend fromIndiasaid she felt like we just went to the spa together! We had a great laugh about how they were stressed on their vacation and the yoga class was the exact place they needed to be to find a fine balance while traveling.
We all stayed back and chatted with the Swanand Family and finally, half an hour later, made our way downtown for dinner. Yes, we had wine and delicious bread but because there was zero stress about running around taking over NYC, we enjoyed each other’s company and really chatted about the important things going on in our lives; it definitely was one of the more memorable nights I have had in NYC.
We do so many things with our friends but I highly recommend trying yoga and just relaxing. Saying ‘thank you’ to our bodies is not over-rated and we all would benefit from doing it more, not only for ourselves but for our friends too! Namaste.
