The NEW Normal

I’m going to be honest…..when we had to close the studio doors back in March and shift everything on-line I was naive.  I thought surely one of the greatest, most advanced countries in the world is going to figure this pandemic out and we are all going to get back to “normal” soon.  I never dreamed that 6 months later we’d only just be tiptoeing back into something that resembles our old normal -- if we can even say that practicing with no more than 10 people, all wearing masks, is any resemblance to the way things used to be. 

Six months in and we are still taking the majority of our yoga classes from home. Of course, nothing replaces the support of a connected community in class, the feedback from a trained teacher, the smell of the incense burning, or the respite of just slipping away to our sacred studio space, but if yogis are anything, we are flexible. We’ve made due, we’ve adapted, some of us have even created our own sacred spaces at home. This is our NEW normal.

I can’t wait until I can welcome all of you back into the studio again with a great big hug (it’s truly going to feel like the best day ever when we can fill our space with the warm and supportive energy of our community), and I hope that day won’t be too far in the future.  But I think this NEW normal is here to stay.

I hope that one day we will gather in community as we used to, but I don’t doubt that on-line yoga is here to stay. I mean, really, how great is it that you can wake up late and still come to class? How wonderful is it that you can practice even when you are out of town? How awesome is it that you can get a recording of the class and practice when it fits into your schedule?

We need our yoga now more than we’ve ever needed it. Yoga makes us resilient, it helps us bounce back from adversity, and it provides us with stability when everything seems topsy-turvy. While so many things in our lives might be different right now, our yoga is the same, whether it’s in person or on-line. It’s been an honor to continue to share this practice with you throughout this pandemic. It’s truly been an honor to be part of your NEW normal.

Thank you for adjusting to this NEW normal with us.  Your support has been overwhelming, and seeing you all show up for each other on-line has been heartwarming.