When I was younger my Ma always taught me NOT to stare at people. It didn’t matter who they were, she told me it was rude, especially if they were in a wheel chair or disabled, or homeless, or a little person, or just a train wreck after a night out drinking. Kids stare. A lot. And often. And if your parents instill at a young age the fact that this is rude or judgmental or hurts the other person’s feelings, then you won’t catch yourself doing it when you get older and there all sorts of things you could stare at! When I lived in Chicago, I did a lot of people watching; it was one of my favorite hobbies. I would park myself at Starbucks and in between reading chapters from my book, I would look up and take it all in…rude customers, bad outfits, gone-wrong hairdos, people making out in line and I could go on but I won’t… sometimes you can’t help but stare!
Lately, I’ve been noticing this more in yoga. Students can’t stop starring at one another! They can’t seem to keep their eyes on their own mat and they end up falling out of a pose or practicing with incorrect alignment because they’re more interested in the yogi to their left who is incredibly flexible and who they immediately decide is a master yogi, or who they become jealous of, or who they admire and aspire to be. But you know what? It’s not possible. We can’t all be the same and practice the same poses and go as deep as each other and do advanced asanas. Every one of you out there reading this has a different body than the person next to you even if they are your twin, you gave birth to them or you’re related! It doesn’t matter- no two bodies are created the same so stop comparing yourself to the other yogis in the room… who cares if you ever do a handstand?!
Because sometimes you just need a child’s pose!
I talk a lot about drishti in yoga and there’s a reason for it. Drishti is the Sanskrit word for a point of focus where the gaze rests during a posture and in meditation practice. The technique of having a drishti in each posture helps develop concentration and teaches you to see the world as it really is from YOUR mat… not someone else’s. Using a drishti in yoga is said to help one “gaze outward while bringing awareness inward.” Examples of dristhi points in yoga include the tip of the nose, the big toe, the navel and my favorite, the “third eye,” that space in the middle of the eyebrows. Having a dristhi like the tip of the nose can also help to strengthen the eye muscles too.
This happened to me first hand the other day while I was a student and not the teacher. I rarely take yoga classes at the studios I work at. I have a home practice and it usually happens very early in the morning because my days are so packed with teaching and dog walking but when I do have extra time, I try to hit up other teachers whose styles I like. Here I am practicing when I notice the girl in front of me is having a full blown starring contest with my mat! Instead of concentrating on the teacher in front of her or herself for that matter, she kept sitting down on her mat (while we were all standing) to take in what exactly I was doing at that precise moment. Not just once, or twice.. honestly, it was for like the entire 90 minutes of class. Not only was it distracting to me but I heard the teacher ask the student to keep her eyes on her mat because she was wobbling all over the place and not really in “synch” with the rest of the class.
I’ll admit it was more than distracting, it was annoying. I get it. I’m a yoga teacher and I’m held to a different standard on the mat then I am off of it. Off the mat, students know me as “that” ashtanga teacher with the loud voice, who doesn’t practice with the students, who (hopefully) has precise cues and is clear and who doesn’t need to demonstrate everything because it’s not about me- it’s about them. They’re paying me money to guide and lead them through an asana practice and if I’m on my mat and focusing on myself, how am I suppose to know if they’re doing the right pose, in the correct alignment, at that precise moment? I can’t. That’s why I have a home practice.
This pose took me years to do… years!
When I go to a yoga class as a student though, I feel like it’s the exact opposite. I feel like I’m the elephant in the room and the students are waiting for me to levitate or something! Just because I’ve been practicing for a long time doesn’t mean I’m a “master” yogi. I don’t even believe such a thing exists. Yoga is a lifelong practice so how can someone master it in one lifetime? I’ve had so many injures throughout my yoga practice that some poses I get into don’t look as graceful as the celebrity yogi’s who grace the cover of Yoga Journal. It’s one of the reasons I am so compassionate towards my students and their different levels of practice… I know what it’s like to be injured and sometimes you just need to take a step back and say, meditate instead!
I love my students!
And let’s face it- some of you will never be able to put your legs behind your head or hold a headstand for five minutes, but that’s not the point of yoga so don’t get wrapped up in what you can’t do! Instead make goals and focus your attention on what you can do and practice harder toward those goals in the future! One last thing on drishti… when cooking and cutting vegetables, I do suggest you look directly below you and not at the TV, your cute dogs or your iPhone! I almost sliced my thumb off eight years ago when I wasn’t paying attention to the knife I was washing. I was too engulfed in a conversation I was having… imagine that?!
I’m featuring Spaghetti Squash today and be careful when you slice it in half… those suckers tend to slip from right out underneath you! Lately I’ve been seeing recipes for cakes and breads with Spaghetti Squash as the main ingredient. I’d never even thought to bake with it, as I usually eat them for dinner because they’re quick, easy and cheap! So here is my take on a Squash Cake… those of you coming to Ashtanga tonight at Yoga Centre will get to leave with a piece so You Come!
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Maple Honey Spice Squash Cake- serves six or more
Ingredients:
-1/2 spaghetti squash (yields about two cups)
-1 cup all purpose flour
-2 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp each cinnamon and ginger
-1/2 tsp each nutmeg and apple pie spice
-1/4 tsp salt
-2 eggs
-1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
-1/2 cup sliced almonds
-1/4 cup maple syrup
-1/4 cup honey
-salt and pepper
-olive oil
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400.
2. Cut the spaghetti squash in half and deseed.
3. Drizzle some olive oil, salt and pepper on top and place cut-side down on a baking sheet for 20 minutes or until soft. Use a fork to scoop the squash out after it’s cooled.
3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices and the salt.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, maple syrup and honey.
5. Then add the two mixtures together and whisk well.
6. Fold in the spaghetti squash and the almonds.
7. Place in a greased cake or bread pan and turn down the oven to 350.
8. Cook for 60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. The cake will be moist inside after it cools for 10 minutes!
So good!
I almost feel like the recipe was written for me! I had half of a cooked spaghetti squash in my fridge about to go bad and then I saw this post and realized that it was meant to be. My cat and I approve of this recipe, it was great! I didn’t have all the spices, so I just used cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie spice.
Also, I can be guilty of yoga staring 🙁 But it’s usually because I am lost, so I’ll take a quick peek at the person next to me to make sure I’m doing the right thing 🙂 Also, I like that you are walking around the room and not doing all the poses! I always appreciate when you correct my posture. If I’m going to do yoga I want to do it right, so your corrections are always welcome!
I am so glad you liked the recipe! And Stella too! And thanks for your kind words, yoga on!