Monday, June 6, 2011

Let Week 8 Begin

We have two weeks to go!

Can I see the light at the end of the tunnel? Well, yes, but rather than the end I fear it is another train coming! Two weeks is a long bloody time that you can still fit in a lot of really hot yoga classes, a lot of really long Hindu movies and a lot of late night lectures. And as Bikram is here everyday for the next two weeks I fear that is what we are in for. We have been quite lucky to date in that he has been away a lot of the time so we get a bit of a reprieve then.





So every year the trainees put forward ideas for a t-shirt and one of them is chosen and then printed up for us as a souvenir of our training. The pic is of ours - in lovely battleship grey (what the F?) and with the slogan, "trust the process" - God help me. So I added my own slogan - one of Bikram's favourite lines. Which I think is a MUCH better expression of this training experience :-)




So today passed rather uneventfully. Class this morning was a regular class that was taught by a visiting teacher in 90 mins, within normal temperature range, which was just as well as I still haven't recovered from last week and I feel tired and sore. We then had our last official Posture Clinic so that everyone got through their delivery of Spine Twisting, the last posture. It was all kind of an anticlimax really. I think the reality that we have to string it all together and teach a class (for some within days of Grad) is starting to hit people and making them a bit subdued.

To date we still have not ever done the left side for any postures or had any guidance on how to deliver the 2nd set, or our timing etc so we're hoping that we get some of that kind of information in the next two weeks. Not to say that I couldn't figure it out myself, or that I would not have instruction from the teachers as my home studio but it is something that I would fully expect to get here. But we are totally ignorant as to what happens from here on in terms of what information we are going to get, what lectures etc ........ after all information is power and god forbid they gave us any of that! LOL - not really. Too close to the truth to be funny.

So Bikram came in and taught this afternoon's class. The difference in his temperament and personality was like night and day. Which further confirms some thoughts I have but feel I don't need to go into here. Those who have read previous posts can draw their own conclusions and we can share our thoughts over a very large bottle of Savy blanc at the Surf Club when I get home.... :-)

There was a slight hint of tension in the air as we wondered what the hell kind of class we were in for, and his behaviour was almost like that of a naughty child trying to win back the approval of his parents, or like a partner who knew they'd f*cked up and was trying to win back your favour. He showered us with compliments and told us we did the BEST Triangle posture EVER and the BEST Cobra EVER! Hmph W-H-A-T-E-V-E-R-R-R-R!

I'm not sure if it was real or just my imagination, but it seemed that no-one laughed quite as loudly at his jokes and antics and that the peops weren't clapping quite so enthusiastically after class. Sorry, Bikram, but the memory of Friday night is still too fresh in our minds for us to forgive you just yet.

Some of you who have been reading my posts have sent messages of disbelief, some of horror! I tell you if I wasn't here myself to witness it I would have put it all down to those infamous "stories" we hear about Teacher Training but never really quite believe.




I can tell you people it IS real. While I don't want to influence other people's opinion about Bikram, or their decision about whether to try this style of yoga or to come to TT, I have at the same time remained totally honest in my thoughts of what it has been like here. I don't know if my experience has been that different to others here, but certainly prior to my coming here NO-ONE told me to expect anything like this. It is almost like there is an unwritten rule that you just shut up, take your cert, move on and forget all the BS because to rock the boat means you may just be blackballed, and ultimately Bikram still holds power over this worldwide network of studios and is able to do just that.




That is not to say that there aren't others here who are loving it and already sad about the thought of leaving - unlike moi who is already half packed and calling the airline to see if I can fly out straight after I get my hands on that one piece of paper that is going to make this all worthwhile.