Seussical YTT Wrap Up & Review

I've long referred to my adventures in yoga teacher training immersions as "camp"… princess camp, ice princess camp, yoga bootcamp… you get the idea.  Having just completed a three week, 300-hour training in the motherland (Birmingham, Michigan), I noted that this camp concept has finally caught on with others, as evidenced by the fact that we had a talent show as one of our culminating activities!! There were some amazing displays of raw talent… singing, playing guitar,  naming all of the prepositions, reciting the states in alphabetical order, acro yoga, synchronized swimming on dry land, magic tricks, and, of course, the special ability to stick one's tongue in one's nose.  My talent is the ability to write in rhyme, and since so many kind souls have been asking about my experience up there, I give you the YTT Wrap Up & Review, Dr. Seuss style.

From near and from far we all gathered here

For a three week adventure we’ll always hold dear.

So in honor of each and every one of you, 

I’ve written some lines as a wrap up and review.

We certainly shared a full range of emotion,

And discussed many cool things like Bhakti devotion.

There was talk of the Gita and lots about karma

As we carefully considered our unique gift, our dharma.

Into each other’s beautiful eyes we did gaze

To listen empathically in more subtle ways.

On my birthday, all day, we sat silently in meditation...

At which point some yogis may have questioned their dedication.

The circle of suffering went on for days upon days,

Requiring countless tissues for our teary-eyed haze.

In the circle of death, we all conspired

Fortunately no one actually expired.

Which reminds me of our time spent in that sweat box

Finding new edges, and experiencing detox.

In related news, we completed the Quantum Wellness Cleanse

And as a result of one video some now see through a new lens.

We taught yoga to strangers all over the town,

And from very tall ladders, we all fell down!

We spent time at Barnum park learning assists and napping

And doing the craziest asanas, with lots of hand clapping.

We blindfolded ourselves and went out to lunch.

Birmingham citizens think we’re an odd bunch.

The pranayama and mandala exercise was a powerful one

Although Lauren’s experience with that sounded *quite* fun.

Leaking, juicy and nuggets were words frequently heard,

Quotes of the day ranged from the ridiculous to the absurd.

Many shenanigans happened at our condo on Hazel Street...

For 3 weeks of hotel living, we veterans vowed not to repeat.

Jira the Wonder Dog brought smiles all around

A YTT mascot... that’s breaking new "fertile ground"!

Jane reminded us all of the importance of self-care,

Jason’s hilarious dance parties were a breath of fresh air!

Jonny’s classes elicited buckets of sweat,

And that crawling in class? We won’t soon forget.

Yes, these awesome teachers inspired us in countless ways.

We’ll carry their lessons with us throughout our days.

We won’t miss the dungeon or the long hours,

prepping for feedbacks or going without showers,

But we’ve expanded our ever growing yoga tribe

And collectively lifted the universal love vibe.

As our epic yoga journey comes to an end, this I know

We’ll carry a piece of each other’s hearts wherever we go.