In 2001 I finished my 200 hour teacher training. I will always remember the last day when we all graduated, there were 26 of us and it felt like a family. I had learned so much about yoga and I had learned even more about myself. I felt like a different person when the training ended.
I loved my practice from the very first class. I had always been in sales prior to learning to teach yoga, so when I stood in front of the class to speak it came easily. Others students asked me if I had done this before and told me I was a natural. That felt so good! One of the most revealing parts of the training for me was when we were asked to look at ourselves and our past experiences from a yogic perspective. This meant without judgement. We were asked to write essays about our lives and then turn them in to be viewed only by the teacher. I loved my teacher and completely trusted her with my work. When she walked through the room it always seemed like she had no feet and was just floating. I was mystified.
In one of the practice classes I took with her we were in a wide standing forward fold, just hanging there. I loved her Ashtanga classes with the heaters blowing on us and our mats lined up in rows in the classroom. That day there was a small vase with a single yellow flower in it. I thought I had something in my eyes so I closed and opened them several times, shaking my head. I was seeing a bright pink light surrounding the yellow flower. I figured it was the light in the room playing tricks on me. After class we sat in a big circle on the floor and she asked if anyone had any questions. I raised my hand. Then it came to me, “Do flowers have aura’s?”, I asked. She replied, “yes!”
When I left that day after graduation I hugged her. She was so kind and had been so supportive. She hugged me and whispered in my ear, “You are special.” I started to cry. I had never felt special before. But I figured she probably said that to all of her students. I wasn’t just leaving the training that day, I was also leaving the state. I had met someone online and fallen in love. He lived in Minnesota and I was planning to move there right after graduation to be with him. I figured I could get a graphic design job there and maybe teach yoga on the side. I had no idea that 6 months after graduation I would open my first yoga studio and be teaching 20 classes per week. I chose the name, “Moksha”, because it means spiritual liberation. And that’s how I felt, liberated.
