Sam I Am

Sam's rocking Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog)

I just completed another yoga weekend and am 16 hours closer to my certification.  Yay!  Every weekend of this training deserves an entire blog entry on its own...the combined energy of the women in this program is just incredible and the weekends are so inspiring, rejuvenating and revealing to me.  However, I have decided to dedicate this post to my beautiful friend Sam (see past entry re: our divine intervention as well as picture above and below.)  Today was a very special day, as Sam completed the program and graduated!

I have learned so much from Sam in the short two months I have known her.  She is pure positive energy and love.  She has a beautiful, almost child-like joy and awe for the world around her.  She is known as the resident "crier" in the teacher training program, which I adore.  She wears her heart on her sleeve and just loves her yoga so much that the tears come every time she speaks about it.  She seems so comfortable in her skin and sure of what she wants to do in this world: to someday be a mom and to teach yoga to children.  I know that yoga had everything to do with her being able to so freely express herself the way she does today, which is so inspiring to me as a beginner in the program and quite honestly, as someone really learning how to be completely myself.

I know that Sam came into my life for a reason, and she says the same about meeting me.  Sam is here for me as I learn to release my attachment to material things, labels and thoughts around how things "should be."  Sam is far removed from the "keeping up with the Jones" mentality and lives a peaceful life doing what she loves: just being herself in the world and not giving a second thought to what anyone else thinks about her choices. 

She says I am here at just the right time in her life to offer support and wisdom as she contemplates beginning the journey towards the event that she has been anticipating more than anything in her life: becoming a mother.  And I cannot wait to watch her become the beautiful, loving and energetic mom that I know she will be.  I hope that I can be exactly what she needs during this time of her life.

The following is an excerpt from Sam's presentation that she gave today as part of her graduation requirements:

"...what I have known since I first stepped on my mat is that I need to share this with the younger generations.  I feel that if children were given the gift of yoga at a young age it would benefit them for the rest of their lives.  The gift of breath and movement sounds so simple, but this is where the lessons begin.  To show them how they can control how they feel simply by how they breathe; how to reduce stress, create energy, and detoxify their bodies so they can perform to their highest potential, that is my wish.  To teach them that lengthening their bodies and relaxing into a posture can bring peace of mind and body.  And to teach them that when times are trying and they feel anxious, worried or any emotion that is not pleasant to them, their yoga is there for them off the mat too.  Yoga will always be there whenever they need to access it to overcome any opposition that may arise in their lives.  These are lessons that have been passed down for centuries from sages that are much more knowledgable and enlightened than I am, but to have the opportunity now to pass on what I can to young people is an honor and a privilege.  I feel that teaching yoga to children will have an impact long after I have left this Earth."

Sam....as Maureen said...."Step into it."  I also say "Let your light shine," because the world will be a much brighter place.  Congratulations my friend.

Sam just being Sam