Te acher zone
Teacher’s Tales:
S
ometimes we need to be fed. I’ve heard one of my teachers,
Norman Blair say this before. It’s stuck in my head ever since
and it particularly resonated for me recently when I went along
to a three day yoga immersion. I was not there for another
certification or to achieve a particular goal. With my other
classes covered, I took three days purely for me. I needed to be fed.
If you are a teacher, when was the last time you went to a class or
workshop and really, truly switched off your teaching brain, instead
of drifting off and thinking, “that’s a nice bit of sequencing,” “that’s a
good quote – where’s that from?” all with ideas of incorporating into
your own teaching somehow? It’s not that doing this is bad or wrong,
and of course there are times when we attend such events with the
specific intention of enhancing our teaching. But, when that is not
the intention, does ‘teaching brain’ leap into action and get in the
way of fully immersing yourself in the experience as a student? I am
guilty as charged.
The classes I would like to attend are usually happening when I
am teaching, or those teachers no longer teach, or those teachers
have moved away, so going to regular classes is currently a rarity.It’s good to take time just for you sometimes. By Paula Hines
As soon as I was there at this immersion, five minutes into day one,
I knew that it was way too long since I had done this. I don’t plan to
leave it so long next time.
Just allowing myself to be a student with no other agenda or
expectations was heart opening.
I’m sure I will integrate some of what I learned into my teaching
but it is unlikely to be anytime soon. Instead, I am weaving what I
came away with into my own practice so that I can eventually arrive
at a place where I am embodying it. And so, when (and if) the time
comes to share this in my teaching, I will be able to do so from a
place of deep understanding and, I hope, authenticity.
After those three days were over I felt so joyful. I came back to my
classes refreshed – my appetite sated and feeling more open and
more able to share fully.
Another reminder that giving back to self really does enable self
to give more to others.Paula Hines is a London-based yoga teacher and writer
(ucanyoga.com)We all need to be fed