November 14, 2016 • Ambergean • ashtanga • LarrySchultz • nicaraugayoga • Rocketgirl • Rocketyoga• Rocketyogatraining • The Rocket • Vancouveryoga • Yoga • yogaohio • Yogaretreats • yogatraining
If you are an American or know someone that is, you can ask them, where were you on 9/11? and just about everybody will know exactly where they were when the towers got hit. Such a big tragedy for our country has created a time capsule that we all can connect to. As life would have it Larry Schultz the Rocket man was in Cincinnati on 9/11, we had a teachers training beginning on 9/12/01 to a group of more then 20 eager students to meet Larry and begin a path of self exploration and healing. Larry flew in to Cincinnati from San Francisco a few days prior to the training and he would always stay at my first yoga instructors house Indu. Indu would treat Larry like a king and make him tons of delicious vegetarian Indian food, his favorite. Larry and I would have time to go around town, do some site seeing and even have time to practice together before the training would commence.
On 9/11 Larry was at Indu’s and I was pregnant with my now 15 year old resting when the first plane hit. The country stood in shock and stillness thru the confusion of what was going on in our country and wondering where are loved ones were. It was a sober day for all.
The next day training was to begin as planned. All the trainers were sitting in the circle, waiting to meet this yoga man they had heard of, with 9/11 on there minds and at the same time excited for a new experience of teachers training. When Larry arrived into the yoga room all eyes were on him, he always had a presence about him and when he entered a room everyone could feel it. Larry proceeded to sit down in the circle and for that whole day he only spoke of yoga, he made not one mention of 9/11.
To this day I have students come visit me from that training and they still speak of how Larry handled the situation. Larry kept the focus on the yoga.
It is so easy to allow ourselves to be pulled this way and that by what is going on in the world around us, but if we can keep the focus on the yoga we can continually simplify our lives and find more peace in our minds and our hearts.
Some of my best memories of Larry was just hanging out and we would only talk about yoga. So today on November 14th, 2016 Larry Schultz would of been 66. Today I am reminded to keep the focus on the yoga, and allow the yoga to be my teacher. Larry used to say “mirror mirror on the wall who is the best yogi of them all?” and once again his students were like what is he talking about? For me it means just do your practice and don’t compare yourself with your peers or what seems to be achieved and not achieved because a lot of yoga is what you don’t see.