Saturday 27 June 2009

Week 9...The Final Mountain

Graduation Day has arrived! Can you believe?

Final class with Bikram last night was incredible. There were about 400 of us, including friends and family. I was crying all the way through Kapalbhati Breating - I was okay until that point. Then the relief and sense of achievement hit me. I cannot believe that I have survived 99 classes (one was a makeup class) and 5096 asanas over 9 weeks. For once in my life I was actually proud of myself instead of wanting other people to be proud of me. OK, time to change the subject before another tear falls and I have to blow my nose.

Whoever said Week 9 was ‘party week’ LIED! It has been the most exhausting of all. We were kept up til early morning every night. I think Tuesday was the worst...5:30am. On Thursday night Bikram did his final lecture and showed us an incredible breathing exercise. We all did it for about 10 minutes. I had to stop at one point because I got a headache. Bikram said afterwards that it was because I have problems with my brain!!

Without actually being here, I don’t think you’ll ever understand how incredible this experience is. All I can say now is that I feel whole. The most important thing I’ve come to realise is that you have to look after yourself first. If you take care of you first (with yoga practise, being good to yourself all the time, taking care of your needs, respecting your body), then you can look after others much more efficiently and not feel any sense of resentment. Ultimately, helping each other is what we’re here for (karma) and what makes us happy. Does that make sense? I hope so. It applies to all aspects of life – work, relationships, friends, family.

It’s been a strange week too. The news that Michael Jackson died really shocked me. I’ve been so detached from the outside world for 2 months – I haven’t watched TV or read newspapers so I don’t know what’s been happening. Bikram was a friend of Michael’s. He talked to us about their relationship. Bikram also knew Elvis Presley (yes, I know this all sounds pretty crazy!). Two weeks before Elvis died, Bikram spent a day with him trying to convince him to take his class but he turned it down. Bikram Yoga did help Charlie Sheen with his problems though – he spoke openly about it on TV interview that we saw a few weeks back. Staying with showbiz, Freda Payne came to visit us yesterday. She praised Bikram and then sang for us!!! Please take a look at the video on this blog. She was amazing (excuse my singing at the start).

The week ended with a talent show on Friday night. We had pizza and cookies and sat there for 3 hours whilst watching our piers entertain us. They were all so fabulous...singing, belly dancing, poetry, sketches, Bollywood dancing – it was incredible. I am so lucky to be part of the Bikram family! Just got to teach my first class now to complete the first circle.

Right, I’m off for a pedicure – then to decide what to wear!

2 comments:

  1. congratulations on your wonderful accomplishment!! If you have time later would you mind talking a little about some of the ins and outs of how you kept yourself sane during the nine weeks? I'm heading out there this fall and would love to know what you brought that you loved, what you found in the area, and what made you happy during such hard work.

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  2. Hi lovely,

    I've just added a few pointers for you. In order to keep sane, just take each day at a time and 'trust the process'. Have a great time! x

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