A Newbie

Jan 9, 2012 | Wisdom | 2 comments

Today I threw myself in the deep end.
Perhaps this is something many people are doing in January, having made a New Year’s resolution to take up yoga for the first time.
I sympathise with any budding yogis out there as I am taking up a new activity this week: printmaking.
It would be easier for me if I had conquered my competitive nature; it would be more fun if I weren’t comparing myself to the other eleven individuals in my class. And, I’d like to say that it’s helped me to have some brilliant insights.
I literally had to tell myself every five minutes in an all-day session of drypoint printmaking today that I was doing fine, that part of what creates learning is making mistakes.
The critical part of my mind – you might have one too? – gave me a “D” for the body of work I did, and it was mainly because I was comparing myself to the class standard. Our lovely instructor was encouraging and helpful, without praising any one individual, and hadn’t held up any kind of standard for us at all.
I think we yoga teachers should take up a totally unfamiliar activity to better empathise with the courage it takes to for a beginner to enrol for a yoga course. Even more so, so we can appreciate all the discomfort, embarrassment, and negative self-talk a new student goes through, especially hanging in there until something starts to fall into place – until there are intimations of what yoga really is.
Any steep learning curve requires great patience. It’s not like making risotto in a rice cooker; it takes time. I’m leaving the word “quit” out of my vocabulary and putting “fun” in instead.
I’ll be back in the classroom tomorrow with my various artistic infirmities, and I’ll try to remember what our instructor has been saying: Just look around and see what appeals to you that you want to shape into something of your own creation. And enjoy yourself!
 
 

2 Comments

  1. I couldn’t agree more Eve. My hubby is a mountain biker and I have recently taken up the sport in an attempt to understand a little about it (it has nothing to do with the fact that he is going to France in two years mountain biking and I can only go if I can ride!). We did a skills training course last weekend which was terrific, but I wasn’t very good (gave myself a D) and struggled for a while with that – “but I’m a yoga teacher, I can balance and I’m strong and I’m this and that…” Comparing myself to the other 4 in my beginners group. But I was a true beginner and they had been riding much longer that me. I am feeling quite good about it now. I have the required mountain biker’s cuts and scraps on the arms and legs (from bushes etc) and actually just found out that the track we were learning on was a ‘very difficult’ track so in light of that, I did ok. Falling off is part of it I am told. Looking forward to practicing more and having another go.
    With love

    Reply
    • Our inner critics don’t let us have any fun. That’s what I find it boils down to. Let me know how the riding goes! Namaste, Eve

      Reply

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

The Archives