I am really digging these basics classes. I think that approaching poses with the mind of a beginner is half the battle. I get into the most trouble whenever I feel like I "know" a pose and go into autopilot. I certainly get the most frustrated when a pose a pose I have "mastered" is not there for me (though really it is I that am not present for it). Aside from working on perspective and attitude, I have learned how to do poses better in every class so far also. Speaking of which:
Good: Fittingly enough, I really enjoyed Humble Warrior http://www.fitsugar.com/Yoga-Pose-Stretches-Hips-8099319 (cant seem to find the translation or a pic on yoga journal). We practiced up against the wall and bracing my foot really helped my balance and foundation. I tried it later that day without a wall and my leg can remember better what I need to be doing.
Bad: So another cool thing this Basics class is helping me realize is that there is a fundamental difference between really knowing a pose and just being able to get yourself into a particular shape after doing your favorite transition. I like Dancer Pose Natarajasana http://www.yogajournal.com/poses/936 and do it fairly often but getting into it from an unfamiliar angle threw me for a loop and I wasn't able to readjust until our last variation. On a sidenote, I originally described here a bunch of excuses as to why I didn't do well with it. Really though, it's simple. There is a lot of work for me to do.
Yummy: Thankfully, Amsa is about as yummy a place to do work as I can think of. I particularly enjoyed listening to the meditative bells that were our music today. I was near the boombox and could really hear the subtleties of the sound. I probably should have been more mindful of the asanas we were doing at the time, but I became fascinated by how the bells sounded the same at first but the longer I listened the more I could detect tiny differences with each peal. I started to imagine a monk carefully considering a bell and then doing their best to hit it with perfect timing and force each time. There was even a rough pattern. A baseline bell, then a bell either softer or louder, then a bell that tries to compensate but is a little off, then finally a bell that is (as far as I could tell) pretty much the same as the baseline bell. I mention all this bell stuff because I think asanas are like that. You have a good pose one day. Then the next one is off and then you have to work on your body and mind to get back there. But you can't really go back, only forward with your memories and hopefully a better attitude and realistic expectations.
Sorry about the tangent. I promise I will de-bat my belfry before the Yoga Pajama party...
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