how a peacock squashed my nose.

as per usual i started to make a list of all the things i wanted to do on the long weekend. luckily i almost immediately ditched the list. i have been very good at list making lately, but not so good at ticking things of said lists. nothing makes me feel less productive than just making a list, but nothing that’s on the list. and when your productivity is already low the last thing you really need is to have it rubbed in your face by with the accusing look of an uncompleted to-do list. so i stayed away from the list, but just allowed myself to be genuinely excited for the three days off.

and though exciting might not be the term for some to describe the type of weekend i had, for me it was definitely a good and a busy one. i went mushroom hunting with some friends and turned into a photo snapping, maniac tourist when we saw baboons back at the car park (which was fun at the time, but unimpressive after my friend told me later that she just saw koalas and kangaroos at a graveyard (!) in perth). on sunday i had a lovely father’s day dinner with my south african dad thanks to his daughter thekla who cooked up a storm for her papa and then got further spoiled with my friend making oxtail pies from scratch for us yesterday.

i took a nap every day, which – call me old – was a highlight!

i also spent a few hours each day at the studio, teaching and practising and found myself with very sore arms this morning after surprise! surprise! a few vinyasa classes. if you want to know one yoga related thing about me it is that i only like bikram yoga. as far as all other kinds go, i know different people like different things, but for me i couldn’t care less about them. however with the way local studios are structured i don’t get enough bikram practise, especially when i teach myself, so i decided that i needed to give vinyasa a chance again.

a lot of people say that they feel intimidated by bikram yoga, that everybody who does it is insanely fit and toned already, an a-type personality, etc. this may or may not be true for some, but for me it is not. however it would describe how i feel about vinyasa. plus it adds an element of speed that always reminds me of an aerobics class when i am the person who is always a step behind because i can’t coordinate my arms and legs in a timely manner.

but we all know the little drawing with the circle and the dot, the comfort zone and where the magic happens and since i need some magic right now, i braved a few classes. it wasn’t quite magical, but i did enjoy myself a little, that was, till i attempted peacock pose. with my legs in full lotus, because that’s apparently easier (ja, right!), and my face flat on my mat i had all of a sudden nowhere to go and no idea how to get out of it. if you don’t know what i am talking about - i made a little drawing so you can picture it - how it should look like and how i look like:

obviously i was a bit embarrassed, not so much because i couldn’t do the pose, but because i couldn’t even get out of it slightly graceful and under what i perceived the watchful eye of other students around me, who know me as a teacher. it was only with a sore nose that i somehow wiggled my way out of the pose and then just sat on my mat and laughed.

and so here is what i learned this weekend:

magic is overrated.

if you can’t get up gracefully, opt for just getting up.

laugh at yourself before others do.

turning an experience from i failed at something into i tried something and only squashed my nose a little is something you can call an accomplishement.