What a Yogi Learned at Football Camp

June 2013

4th and 1

I should clarify.  4th and 1 is not simply a "football camp"  It is a free football and life skills camp for student-athletes. I am beyond proud to have been a part of this innovative program founded by Daron Roberts,  Cleveland Browns defensive quality control coach and a graduate of Harvard Law School.

For six days, the student-athletes lived on the Jacksonville University campus and gained exposure to college life. They were exposed to college admissions counseling, business skills training, life skills courses, and motivational speakers. The curriculum also included daily yoga, résumé writing workshops, SAT skills classes, dinner etiquette instruction and of course football.  

WHAT I LEARNED AT FOOTBALL CAMP

 

Football is not a game. It is an opportunity to:

• • work with others toward a common goal  
  • be courageous and take chances
  • succeed and celebrate
  • let go of the past -  errors happen, what now?  
  • be an encourager  
  • trust others  
  • protect others
  • to trust that others are protecting you
  • forgive, move on and trust again (see above)
  • Play, laugh, breathe, experience joy and roll with the unexpected!  
•  

Be amazed. 

 

From a physical standpoint, can you see how side angle, triangle, our revolving poses, shoulder opening poses, and warriors (quad strength and knee stability) benefit this movement?  From a mental standpoint,, do you

think there might be a tiny bit of focus to create the just right timing necessary to catch the ball at this height? All while potentially surrounded by others working to stop you!

 

Beautiful. 

.

My Yoga Philosophy as Applied to Football

• It is not where you start, it is how far you travel
• Persistence combined with patience pays off
• Accomplished athletes are yogis on the field.  they are focused, in the moment, working at the body's capacity,and removers of obstacles
• You don't need a mat to practice seva (selfless service) Too many examples to begin to describe!     

 

Check out this beautiful Side Angle Pose!

 

What I will carry with me:

 

When given a place of acceptance we shed our protective exterior. and the true self emerges   The true self is beautiful, joyful and kind.  It takes strength and courage to expose the true self.  The 4th and 1 student athletes have strength and courage.

 

 

 

 

What triangle looked like on day 3.

Beautiful, right? 

 

 

 

The camp is sponsored through a grant from the

Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation.

 

A special shout out to the Jacksonville Jaguars Organization, for making generous contributions to our city and its residents. I am grateful for the time, the professionalism and graciousness shown to the 4th and 1 participants. How awesome for them to get to see the stadium, locker room,and talk with accomplished professional athletes!  No longer a fair weather fan, I'll be cheering. I am all in!     . 

 

 

4th and 1 student athletes in the Jag locker room!

 

A deep bow of gratitude to the MMY community for generously doanting yoga mats for all student athletes!  Thank you for participating with me!

Moving Forward, Choose the Good - September 11, 2001

We all have memories of September 11, 2001.  Mine  starts with a phone call from my husband while walking my daughter into pre-school.  He was in New York on business  and called to say there was a bomb (what he thought at the time) in the World Trade Center, and that he was fine.  He had spent the night at the World Trade Center Marriott, had checked out and was attending a meeting in a nearby building.   In short, my husband was unable to leave the immediate area until late in the day and witnessed up close all the terror we have seen so many times on television.  Five days later, he arrived home safely.

In addition to the horrific tragedies of the day, he also witnessed bravery, compassion, and in the face of uncertainty, strangers caring for strangers.  Likely you witnessed it in your community as well.  And felt it.  As we moved about in the weeks following, did you notice the feelings of being connected to those in your community?  In the grocery store, at work, even while driving?  Do you remember hearing heart warming stories and sharing them with others?  In addition to the image of the towers falling, we were also shown images of great compassion as communities came together and cared for one another. 

The media continue to show us images of the destruction of the day.  Are we imprinting ourselves and our children with images of fear and hatred, when we have available to us images of courage, compassion and love?   Rather than replaying the image of the destruction, what if we replayed the compassion, the kindness, the unity that arose that day and the days that followed?  We don't need to rely on the media to do that for us, the images, the stories of our unique experiences are available to us if we choose to recall them.

Recall the feeling of connectedness, the compassion and selfless actions you observed and felt. What a beautiful way to live. Today, be mindful, not in sadness, but joyfulness that today you have an opportunity to choose to live unified, with compassion and with concern for the interest of others.  Allow actions to follow.

Namaste,

Terri

Want to do more?

Visit: The Corporation for National and Community Service

The September 11th National Day of Service and Remembrance is the culmination of efforts originally launched in 2002 by the 9/11 nonprofit MyGoodDeed with wide support by the 9/11 community and leading national service organizations. This effort first established the inspiring tradition of engaging in charitable service on 9/11 as an annual and forward-looking tribute to the 9/11 victims, survivors, and those who rose up in service in response to the attacks.

Healing Grief

Recently I had a conversation with my mother regarding grief and how individuals seem to process grief differently. After much thought on this topic, and my mother's wise words, I have this to offer. We all grieve at some point in our lives, the obvious loss of loved ones and pets, but also dreams, performance in our careers, stressful human relationships - dissappointment can come in many ways.

When disappointment and sadness appear, consider this:

Consider the idea that each of us has a spirit that is good and capable of handling all that life is throwing at us. A spirit that is loving and compassionate. Our NATURE is loving, good and capable.

We also have a mind, that is conditioned by our life experiences. Often telling us things that are not helpful or kind.

When dissappointment and grief arise, it is not the spirit that is in pain or suffering, but the mind, telling the story of what should have been, speaking to us of our shortcomings and speaking to us of the meaning of our loss.

Our feelings, followed by actions, may stem from the spirit - a place of love and compassion, or from the mind - a place that is often directed toward suffering.

When feelings of sadness and disappointment arise, try practicing your awareness meditation. See if you can get past the stories that the mind is bringing you and tune in to the more basic, simple spirit of love, kindness, strength and simplicity.

RYT 500 Advanced Yoga Teacher Training in Jacksonville Florida

RYT500 coming to Mindful Motion Yoga!

Yoga has added so much to my life. It has provided me with unlimited avenues for both physical and spiritual growth. I continue to seek ways to personally grow in this practice have worked the last several months with a collection of teachers who have joined together to facilitate an advanced teacher training in Jacksonville, Fl.

I am happy to announce that in 2010 Mindful Motion Yoga will be hosting world class teachers as they deliver a teacher training program at the 500hour level (RYT500)! Many of our sessions will include workshops with these special teachers offering portions open to the community. We will be offering the program under the direction of Jenny Otto - E-RYT 500 and founder of Body Balance Yoga - an RYS with Yoga Alliance.

Details can be found at www.RYT500.com Program start date of March 2010 (sessions at Mindful Motion Yoga will begin Fall 2010). Please feel welcome to email me or call with any questions!

Namaste,

Territerri@mindfulmotion-yoga.com

Gratitude and Yoga

I am thankful to the practitioners who have suggested this blog for our studio. This past week we introduced a "pose of the week". I chose Bhujangasana for our first week and was so proud on Friday and this morning as I witnessed beautiful, mindful bodies flowing with such grace and strength into the pose. I am proud of the teachers, proud of the students, proud of the space and so overwhelmingly grateful to be a part of it all. Next week, Tadasana.