No matter how many years since grade school, there is something about fall, and particularly that time around Labor Day weekend and September settling in, that says it’s time to be back in school. This year, of course, that will look very different. I still find myself wanting to get fresh notebooks with crisp, clean pages and pens, and a new package of highlighters. It’s been even longer since I’ve needed a box of fresh crayons, but I still think of those too.
Okay, but why am I bringing back to school up with a post on yoga?
Because there are still so many opportunities to learn this fall with your yoga studios. I think I’ve talked before about looking forward to workshops. Not only have the physical practice classes shifted online or – for some studios – a hybrid model, but so have workshops. And there are benefits to still keeping updated what workshops are being offered and taking them from the comfort of home.
The Mat Yoga Studio here in Dallas has upcoming virtual workshops on their calendar, including a half-day silent retreat, and two additional workshops from this year’s mindfulness workshop series with Dorsey Standish. I attended one virtual book club (yes, this studio has a book club!) over the summer and I look forward to November’s, which an option of taking a series of classes to further explore the themes in the book.
Knowing that studios and teachers are offering workshops online, it might be a good opportunity to see if a teacher you respect has workshops that you might not otherwise get to take if they live in a different city. For our 300-hour training last year, The Mat hosted amazing teachers from around the country that I might otherwise have to wait until their return to the area (or maybe if a friend and I finally go to that festival and they just happen to teach that year). Relatedly too, if you might be staying at home somewhere away from your studio, virtual workshops are a great way to still participate.
Another thing that may seem simple can just be my set-up. I was pleasantly surprised when I settled in for a workshop earlier in the spring and found that a shelf on my coffee table was a great height to take notes and I wasn’t shifting my notebook across the length of a block to write, or moving my writing set-up off my mat for a practice portion. If I wanted more support, I could also reach over and grab a pillow from the couch quite a bit more easily!
I love seeing the upcoming workshop calendar on The Mat’s website, and I am happy that there continue to be events I can keep an eye on to attend virtually. I think that it’s important to continue to focus on the positives, and as a perpetual student, I’m so happy these opportunities to learn continue!
This is the part of a series of posts for The Mat Yoga Studio, sharing my thoughts and observations as a student only. The views and opinions are my own.
