Yoga Teacher Graduation
“We judge ourselves by what we feel capable of doing, while others judge us by what we have already done.”
— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
The Last Week of Yoga Training
The third week of yoga teacher training in Guatemala is testing week. Everyone in the training had to teach a one hour class during the week and take a written exam at the end of the week on Friday before (hopefully) graduating on Saturday.
As the usual, we still had a 90 minute yoga class with Doron each morning. Every once in awhile, if the group looked particularly exhausted, he would go easy on us with a slower, less strenuous class. In three weeks of yoga training, he maybe did this twice. Maybe. The rest of the time, he took it as an opportunity to build our endurance. Keep stretching those sore spots and work those muscles. Keep at it and your body will get used to it.
He’s not wrong. But still.
The third and final week is when we had practical teaching exams. To pass our training, each student had to teach a 60 minute yoga class. During this week our morning yoga session was followed by two more yoga classes each afternoon taught by a student. One class at 3:30pm, and another at 5pm, with additional time for feedback. That’s three and a half hours of yoga each day – as a base. If you wanted to practice your teaching before the exam, you were also using your morning and afternoon study breaks to practice your sequence with a friend.
This week we all got a lot stronger. And a lot more tired. The stomach sickness of the prior week had passed, but there was no getting around the physical exhaustion.
You Know it, Now Teach It
My class was one of the last sessions of the week. Thursday afternoon, in the second, 5pm session. I felt slightly and unexpectedly nervous for most of the day. I prepared all week and was more than ready. Also this is just a fun thing I decided to do that in no way impacts the relative success of my life. If I ‘fail’ it really doesn’t matter.
But I’m a perfectionist and I hate going last.
In the end, I had nothing to worry about. I got a little lost on one sequence, skipping some backbends on the belly. Whatever. I didn’t even notice while I was teaching, and if you didn’t know the correct sequence I was supposed to follow, you wouldn’t have noticed either. The important thing is I felt comfortable. Years of yoga classes and wordly yogic experiences allowed me to act like I knew what I was doing. Because you know what, I did know what I was doing.
The students in my class said it seemed like I’d been teaching for awhile, and that’s the best compliment I could receive. I didn’t feel rushed or overly anxious once the class started. I felt present and time went by quickly, which is great.
I recognize the real world of yoga teaching will be a bit different. I was teaching a class to my friends who are endlessly supportive and helpful, even when giving constructive feedback. But you have to start somewhere and it was a damn decent start to something new.
Getting Off Campus
After we each taught our hour long class, the written exam flew by like a breeze on Friday morning. The hard part was already done. It no longer felt like a big deal to write down some sanskrit poses, yogic values, and techniques for pregnant women on paper.
After we finished the written exam, several of us walked to a nearby cafe on the water called Maya Moon. We were high on that feeling of freedom you get after passing your college final exams and it’s Friday night. We’re still yoga students, so we didn’t order shots or got drunk on jagbombs. However we did order a pile of brownies, and spent a few lovely hours swimming in the lake.
It was perfect. The weather was perfect and it was an ideal end to the training. I couldn’t have asked for more.
Graduation
We went back to the shala later that afternoon to officially graduate as yoga teachers. I’m not gonna lie, it was fairly emotional. I know I was only in yoga teacher training for three weeks, but it was a life changing experience. I met these amazing people and accomplished something for myself I wouldn’t have expected a few years ago.
After graduation, the feelings of relief and personal satisfaction started to blend with a bittersweet feeling from realizing that the experience was coming to an end. In a day or two we would all leave the friends we made, and the daily schedule of yoga and meditation for the real world again.
Before being handed our certificates, each of us talked about how we felt about the experience overall. Several yogis expressed some apprehension and unease over how to bring this feeling of contentment and presence back home to our busy lives. In a few short days many would be back to stressful jobs and boyfriends, busy schedules, and adult responsibilities. It helped some to hear others share their own fears and concerns.
That night we all crowded around a camp fire singing songs like a boy scout troup on a weekend away. It was cliche, and cheesy, and also a really beautiful evening.
The next day we exchanged hugs and pictures, and began to separate as people had to leave to catch flights or shuttles to the next town. A few of us stayed behind for a few days, either staying at the yoga center or moving to a nearby town on the other side of the lake. I moved across the lake to the slightly busier city of San Pedro. Myself and several other ladies exchanged contact information, and over the next few days several of us met up for the occasional dinner, drink, or afternoon outing.
It’s been a blast, everyone.
Mercados and Cementarios
The Sunday after graduation, those of us still in the area and in the mood for an adventure boarded a combination of three ‘chicken buses’ destined for Chichicastenango, a.k.a. Chichi. Chichi is known for its large craft market held every Sunday and Thursday. I still felt tired from three weeks of yoga training, but also exhilarated from finishing yoga training. So let’s go.
Guatemalan public buses are sometimes called chicken buses for obvious reasons. The buses are crowded, no rules kind of transportation, with drivers that race perilously close to steep drop offs on windy, rocky, mountainous roads. But they’re hella cheap and a helluva experience.
It took almost two hours and three buses to get to Chichi. Was it worth it? Eh. I mean the market it huge. And if you’re in the mood to buy a lot of Guatemalan crafts and textiles, it’s the right place for you. I wasn’t in the right mood. The market was nice enough, but a lot of the same things over and over, and it was a long trip to get here for a tired yoga body.
BUT. Despite my lack of enthusiasm for the market, at the risk of sounding macabre I did really enjoy visiting the equally renown cemetery in Chichi. As you can see from the pictures, it’s not just any ordinary cemetery. It’s rich in color, history, scenic views, and artistic touches.
I also had a very lovely lunch in Chichi with the very lovely Fabian from Switzerland. Yoga training took the shopping excitement right out of both of us, and she tired of the market as quickly as I did. That’s fine. I’m always game to eat.
San Pedro
Before leaving Lake Atitlan, I spent a few days by myself in the town of San Pedro. I didn’t do a whole lot during this time. Mostly I tried to develop a new life routine, involving a bed time before 10pm, and a solid hour of mediation and Yoga before 8am. I wasn’t completely perfect on this endeavor, but it’s a start. Even after three weeks of life experiences and strict schedule adherence, old habits still die hard. Luckily the guesthouse I stayed in had a lovely (and empty) rooftop, which gave me the perfect non-excuse to keep up my practice.
I worked on my blog, and tried to eat mostly healthy vegetarian food. With maybe a plate of cheese fries and a little bit of gelato fit in for balance. Recognizing that I’m going back to my own reality soon, I even applied to a few jobs online. This previously gave me a feeling of panic, but I feel ok about it now. I feel ready to come home. Ready to feel grounded, to see people I care about, and to contribute again. I’m still not sure at what exactly, but I’m less anxious about figuring it out. I’ll try a few things, and if they don’t work out, I’ll try something else.
It’ll be ok.
