Daily Prompt: Communal

8 AM Saturday morning for more than 13 years. Yogalates class at the Y. Someone has since put a trademark on that name, so now its called pilates and yoga fusion on the schedule, but for many of us, it’s still yogalates. Its a drop-in class, free to all Y members.

Participants come and go, and many of us show up more often than not. Terry leads the class, as she has since its inception. She’s welcoming, funny “rest in plank”, encouraging and supportive “listen to your body, do what’s right for you”, challenging. She devises soundtracks for class. There’s a heavy emphasis on classic rock, mostly of a softer variety, with specials for holidays and birthdays.

Class composition is interesting, with many older participants. There are also a surprising number of men, maybe 30 percent of the class. Some of us are very bendy, and some know the general direction of their toes. Balances also go that way with some people holding a pose with ease, even with eyes closed, and others of us using the wall for support. Its interesting around the holidays as visiting family members or former participants back in town are welcomed back to class.

Many of us chat at beginning and end, getting gradually acquainted. We keep returning because its a good workout and we see progress. Even more importantly, I think we return for the group, and the communal intention to learn and grow together. Terry has put together some online classes, and I do them from time to time, as its great when traveling or I only have a short time to workout. But its not the same as being present in class, where my sense is that our combined presence supports each of us to show up for ourselves and each other in a more complete way. The communal effort changes things.

I’ll end this as we end each class.

Namaste.

via Daily Prompt: Communal

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