Yoga Responds & Nurtures
My first experience with yoga, in 2008, came at a time of deep grief due to the loss of both my parents in 24 months. An unexpected one-on-one class occurred where I was the only student, and the teacher, after hearing my story, covered me with a blanket, let me cry and rest for an hour. She held space for my grief. A year later, I moved to Greenville and, with a health diagnosis of osteoporosis and the memory of genuine compassion, I found my way to (what was then) North Main Yoga. I found safe movement, knowledgeable and supportive teachers, and a community of wonderful people.
I realized quickly that this all-encompassing practice touches on every aspect of me: physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual. Wherever I find myself, in moments of joy or despair, pain or ease, yoga responds and nurtures. Learning more has allowed me to see what I need from the practice, be it rest or sweat, gentle or active, balance or strength or peace. I stick with yoga because it's always there for me in exactly the right way.
Why Nidra? The pandemic in 2020 seemed to create a longing in me for a deeper internal exploration after I lost the physical connection time to one another. Those two years of offering Nidra only on Zoom showed me a way of connecting that was non-existent before, and I was also helping others engage in that same deep self-exploration. It felt magical in a time that was anything but. Though we are five years out from the COVID shutdown, I think we are still existing in a huge state of uncertainty. So how do we live through the chaos and fear that the world is forcing our way? For me, slowing down in the physical asana practice can help me find subtleties to relax in the body. Offering support to the joints and bones in a restorative practice can deeply relax my body and quiet my mind. And the guided meditation of Nidra allows all of this as well as a keen understanding of how I, as an individual, can be steady and calm, even happy, no matter what is going on. Magic!
My continued learning and my daily practice helps me, too, to share with others what works for me. ~Jill
