Breaking the Rules

Day 54, Hour 50 of 120 Hours of Yoga

I am really starting to enjoy yoga, if not for the physical benefits, then at least for the stories I come away with. Today did not disappoint in the story area.

I arrived 25 minutes early. KJ was filling in for another instructor for the 4:30pm class. I walked in and immediately saw Ryann who was seated, working on her computer tablet, and Phil and KJ who were standing at the check-in desk in passionate conversation about something. I had already checked-in using the app, and as I walked by the desk, KJ and Phil kept talking. None of them - not Ryann, KJ, or Phil - looked up to say hello. So I kept on walking, left my flip flops near the wall, and proceeded towards the hot room. I was almost out of the lobby - about 2 steps from being out of sight from the front desk - when I heard Phil say, "ready to get your sweat on?"  Was he talking to me? I have no idea. I have been to this studio almost everyday for 2 months now, and the only 2 people who do not know my name are Phil and Ryann .. ironic as they own the place. Anyways, I did not turn to acknowledge the question.  If Phil really wants to know if I'm ready to get my sweat on, he can ask me by name. 

OK, but onto the story I really came here today to tell you about! I placed my towel along the far left mirrorless wall, 3 rows back from the front mirror, and 1 spot ahead of the "back left corner" that I've written about before (the corner spot that is coveted by a few patrons as it's like a private nook compared to the rest of the studio which is wide open).  There were already 2 other people in the room when I set up, and by the time 4:30 rolled around it was almost at 100% capacity - probably the fullest class I've been in since I've started practicing here.

A young man set up next to me, and as 4:30 approached 2 women came in together, and he moved over a bit so they could practice side-by-side. He seemed kind of fidgety - not annoyingly fidgety, just something I noticed as I was laying supine, and still, on my mat after doing some hip stretches while waiting for class to start. 

Class started. It was a flow-class with music, same as yesterdays. With little exception, the flow sequence and the music were about the exact same as yesterdays flow-class with KJ. I didn't mind, though. The flow classes feel similar to a dance, to me, and like a dance routine, there is a feeling of confidence when moving through a yoga-flow routine seamlessly. 

I was really aware of the movements of the people that were practicing around me - especially those in the rows ahead of me. I've been in a lot of classes at Modo where most of the students are a lot younger than me. I really don't care about the ages, it's just something I've noticed. But tonight, most of those around me were my age or older. And the flow of the entire studio seemed so fluid. It's like we were all seaweed waving synchronously in the current. And KJ practiced with us as she taught - a skill that I've come to respect in all yoga instructors.  

It's rare that anyone leaves the studio during class. So when someone does leave, you notice. The young man next to me left on several occasions, and at one point I looked and noticed something very unusual: a pair of running shoes in the far back left corner of the studio! Shoes just laying there, casually, taking up a yoga space that I'm pretty sure someone would have chosen if the shoes had not been there. No-one brings shoes into the studio! Everyone is expected to leave their shoes at the front door. Shoes in the studio! I was shocked, then intrigued with a hint of admiration at whoever - knowingly or not - broke the rules.  I was pretty sure that the shoes belonged to the young man next to me. He was dressed in running gear, and the shoes were in the spot directly behind him, so it made sense. But then there was the matter of him leaving class about 3 times, always returning within 30 seconds or so.

About half-way through class, as we finished the standing series and sat down on our mats for mid-way shavasna, I noticed an extra mat laying on the floor between the young man and the running shoes. He was switching mats every so often, and at one point KJ came over and offered him a towel. He took the towel and said, "thanks, I don't have my regular mat with me today". It was clear that he had rented a mat, and without a towel the mat became uncomfortably sweaty, so he left the class to get another one, and was switching back and forth to mitigate the sweat situation. After KJ gave him a towel to place on his mat, he didn't need to switch back and forth anymore. Problem resolved.

But this whole scenario was very unusual and it pleased me in a way. Starting the hour with Phil and Ryann in their pretentious bubble (that's how I see them, anyways), and ending it with this young runner guy with his tennis shoes and an extra mat sprawled across the studio taking up 2 extra spaces, was really perfect. 

I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings! Standby.