One December morning,
I was crossing the street to catch the bus on my way to work.
A driver,
Who wasn't paying attention,
Executed a turn at a high rate of speed while I was in the crosswalk with the right of way.
Being less than a second away from death,
I jumped and avoided impact.
When I came home that afternoon,
I put together a list of everything I wanted to accomplish in the next year,
At the top of which was learning and practicing yoga in order to combat what working at a desk job had done to my body and to control my stress.
The following week,
I enrolled in a semester of yoga.
I meant to simply audit the class since my work schedule only allowed me to attend one of the two classes each week,
But I somehow found myself fully enrolled.
Looking back,
This was certainly no accident.
After speaking with my instructor,
She graciously allowed me to make up the difference by attending a yoga class once a week at a nearby studio.
By just that,
I saw a respect for other yoga teachers and a refreshing lack of competition that seemed to abound in my professional experiences.
My first lesson off the mat,
Leave your shoes and your ego at the door.
At first,
I was intimidated by the fact that I was twice the age of my classmates.
But as the weeks went on,
I started feeling younger.
I'll never forget the afternoon I texted my wife with the message,
I was able to touch my toes today.
Even more,
I'll never forget the day when my instructor told us that yoga isn't just about touching your toes,
But it's everything about what we learn as we reach for them.
Shortly thereafter,
I woke up early on a Saturday morning and saw that a grassroots food rescue project had set up close to my home.
They allow customers to purchase up to 60 pounds of produce for only $10.
So I headed across the street to load up.
After waking up,
My wife asked me how I managed to carry all of that home.
I said,
Yoga.
I simply breathed through it.
I hadn't given it any thought until she asked.
But the strength I gained from yoga wasn't purely physical.
I hadn't given any thought to nearly being hit again when I crossed the street either.
All I thought about was the wonderful meals we could make with the produce,
And how we could share the leftovers with friends and co-workers.
I finally recognized the mind-body connection.
This was my next off-the-matte lesson.
The semester was coming along wonderfully.
Friends and co-workers were also seeing a change in me,
Some commenting that I was beaming and that I seemed to be more at peace.
Week by week,
Yoga was making some very positive changes in my life.
Just before one of my weekly make-up classes at the other studio,
I was sharing my transformation with that instructor,
As we visited before class.
At one point,
She looked me straight in the eye,
Smiled warmly,
As she said,
You want to teach,
Don't you?
I nearly cried.
Yes,
I wanted to teach.
What I learned off the mat that day was that true perception and understanding comes from the seemingly forgotten art forms of simply listening to and connecting with others.
I felt somewhat sorrowful when that semester ended,
As I had such a heartfelt respect for both of my teachers,
And I wanted to spend more time with them.
Then I heard those words again,
You want to teach,
Don't you?
I took a leave of absence from my job and pursued my 200-hour yoga teaching certificate,
Which pushed me to build upon everything I'd learned on and off the mat.
During that time,
I discovered what a great responsibility it is to guide those who are on the mat to take those lessons off the mat,
For that is where we spend most of our time.
Additionally,
I was further challenged to do the same in my daily life.
Fast forward,
I was teaching my first class.
One of the students was pregnant at the time,
Another was a disabled veteran.
Talk about a challenging first day on the job.
But it ended up going smoothly because I was able to make everyone feel included,
Extending the same courtesy that was shown to me when I was a student.
The off the mat lesson that day was putting aside my fear of teaching for the first time and making everyone feel safe and comfortable,
Which is exactly how my teachers treated me and others.
One of the many things I enjoy so much about yoga is that there is a continual opportunity to learn more.
I'm a teacher,
But I will always remain a student.
So the next semester,
I enrolled in yoga classes again.
That semester concluded in the fall,
And just before it did,
The same instructor who brought me into a yoga life gave me one of the biggest compliments and honors I've ever received by asking,
Would you like to lead in class sometime?
I was privileged to lead the class in the full moon salutations,
Especially since we were under the full moon on that very day.
I saw a respect for other yoga teachers and a refreshing lack of competition that otherwise seemed to abound in my professional experiences.
I owe a debt of gratitude to the driver who nearly hit me that day.
Because he wasn't paying attention,
I now am.
Perhaps that was the best off the mat lesson so far.
With peace,
Love,
And gratitude.
God bless!
