Creating a quiet or sacred space for one’s self, or specifically, for one’s yoga practice, is a challenge for many of us. Add a busy career, relationships and /or children and it becomes this beautiful chaos.  One way I chose to simplify this juggling act was letting go bit by bit of solitary time, be it in a yoga studio or at home. That was a recipe for irritability.  So finding a cozy studio that feels like “home” is rare, yet 889 has easily achieved this.

As a yoga teacher and mother, I often passed on my own practice to make that extra special dinner or snuggle on the sofa as per my children’s common request. I regarded this sacrifice as “being yoga,” or selfless service. This inevitably didn’t work, as the benefits of daily asana are keenly felt.

Yoga practicioners feel on a cellular level just how often their body craves dynamic flow or deep slow stretching. Maintaining a balance is easy in theory, yet often challenging as a mother and wife. Choices are made. Husband frowns, “yoga again? Didn’t you take care of that stretching last week?” Women do tend to sacrifice of their own free will, yet not exactly martyrs.

In Virginia Woolf’s extended essay, “A Room of One’s Own,” the author laments that women could achieve so much more creatively if given fair and equal circumstances.  The one phrase we all recognize is “A Room of One’s Own” . Loosely translated it is Woolf’s assertion that a woman needs both financial stability and a room with a lock and key if she is to thrive intellectually as a writer.

There is a common thread in Woolf’s catch phrase for the yoga practicioner. If there is a desire to deepen your knowledge through the hatha, Raja , Bhakti, and Jnana traditions we need precious time, an inviting space and the resources to support your studies.

So I can only share my experience. There is never enough time in the day, so I have accepted my life rhythm, knowing it is in a constant state of flux. Without guilt I sneak away to the nearest yoga studio, where I find space without distraction. This is glorious. It feels extravagant to steal away when I am always emotionally needed at home.  I am the classic “ yogi householder.”  So perhaps I haven’t cultivated a sacred space in my home as small fingers scribble on journals, jab objects in my candles, and throw yoga blocks in the swimming pool! My safe haven is running to a yoga studio!

889 Yonge sets the standard. There was no intention to gush on about this , yet 889 provides this sanctuary as their members can attest to. When I arrive, sans children, I sit down, tea in hand.  As I inhale 1000 Mysteries herbal blend , I realize I have olfactory memory of the fragrant tea with this studio, it is one and the same, bliss. Little things like this create excellence, as aromas have had their place in therapeutic use for centuries. Everything smells yummy and clean. I begin to decompress . I leaf through the pretty yoga books, not analyzing anything. All multi-tasking is put on hold, letting my thoughts pass through me, I am grateful to have found that room of my own.

http://889yoga.com/blog/yoga-movement/a-studio-of-one%E2%80%99s-own-and-why-we-need-this/

Posted on September 21, 2014