Girls Day Out

A few weeks ago I was invited by my yoga instructor, Helen, to join her and Dana (another student) to attend a yoga workshop. It was down in Fayetteville, Arkansas. We made a day of it and headed down there in the morning. It was fun to visit and get to know these new friends of mine. Fayetteville has a farmers market on the square so we went there first. It was way different than ours here in Carthage. They had musicians and lots of vendors with all kinds of different items for sale. From produce to crafts it was pretty amazing. They even had a magician performing. We were getting hungry so we asked the locals for a recommendation. They pointed behind us which we thought was a office building of some kind. Turns out it was a post office that was turned into a restaurant. We decided to eat outside since it was so beautiful..and the lunch was yummy.

We wanted to get to the "Yoga Center" early so we could get a good spot and also change our clothes. As you walk in, there is wood and decorated glass doors leading into the main room. Everyone was so welcoming and friendly. We changed and got ready on our mats. There was about 30 people so we were sitting pretty close to each other. (I was not sure what to expect, this is all new to me.)

This was a workshop to learn about a different kind of Yoga called, Kundalini. We had 2 instructors who taught us for 3 hours.

We did many variations of positions of movement all to awaken our chakras which they believe is the core of our energy.

What I liked about it was the rhythm and the flow. We did yoga movements for 3 to 7 minutes at a time.

We got a little break.... so we enjoyed the fall day amidst the peaceful setting. (Not sure what happened to my hair!)

Of course we ended the session with the "Savasana" pose which is where you lay flat and close your eyes and just relax.This is a time when you focus on how your body has benefited from this workout. You allow your thoughts to come and go. They had these little bean bags that smelled like lavender which you put over your eyes. Yoga is all about "being in the present". I like that. Too often I am just looking at the next thing I am to do and not really paying attention to each moment. You can miss a lot living like that so that is something I am working on. At the very end, we arise from our "Savasana" and we sit up in a comfy position in unison we Oman....3 times. Then we all say "Namaste" which means "I honor the place in you which is divine. I honor the place in you which is of love, of peace, of light, and of truth. May the divine in me bless the divine in you." This is how all yoga sessions end.

Here are our instructors-Jimmye Whitfield and Mona Jones. They have traveled all over the world teaching Yoga.

This particular Yoga Center we were at was featured in a recent magazine.We chatted a little with everyone, visited the gift shop and then got ready to leave. We all decided on Thai for dinner before heading home. It was delicious!
I enjoyed spending the day with Dana and Helen. They are thoughtful and fun women. We talked nonstop about everything on the way home and I feel I got to know them a lot better than just seeing them in class every week at the Y.

Sometimes you just need a "girls day out"!!!!