Mindy is one of three Rise + Vibe teacher trainers. In addition to her dedication to the practice + teaching of yoga, she is a body worker, nature lover and an inspiration to each of her students. Thanks, Mindy!
For the first part of my twenties, I was bopping around the country working seasonal jobs as an environmental educator, snowboard instructor, and as a summer camp guru. I loved every minute of it, and I lived in some pretty sweet places; California, Colorado, the Cape and coastal North Carolina to name a few. However, none of these jobs gave me any stability; financial, emotional and actual physical stability. So when I first stepped on my mat in 2004, I knew this practice was for me.
Immediately, there was a sense of grounding and community I hadn't really had before. While it was wonderful to create this sense of stability; my wanderlust eventually won over and I took off to New Zealand and Australia for a few months. I mention this only because, my goal while overseas was to learn to surf; and yoga helped me do it. I swam a few times a week at the resort pool and did a lot of chatarungas and pop ups to warrior 2. The first time out on my surfboard, I stood up. My instructor didn't believe that I had never surfed before. But yoga, the breathing, the strength and the patience allowed me to do this, and I've been hooked ever since.
Eventually my travels led me to the Caribbean and after the financial downturn in 2008, I started waiting tables full time. For the first time in my life I had money.
I met my first mentor, Kate Dunne, also an American expat living in Grand Cayman, on the plane. She is a massage therapist and yoga teacher and has the most magical space I've ever received bodywork in. I told her I've always wanted to be a massage therapist and thought about teaching yoga, and she convinced me that there's no time like now. So with this new found financial freedom, I started my first of many yoga trainings at Bodyworks in Grand Cayman. My first teacher training was taught over the course of two years, so I had lots of time to digest the material, reflect on what I had learned and decide whether or not I wanted to teach yoga. Since then, I accrued another 525 hours of training in hot yoga, sequencing, yin and ashtanga.
My mentor, Kate, is a mixture of factual knowledge and pure intuition. She has studied extensively, and I always felt like I learned something new from her both as a yoga student and as a teacher.
Next I discovered Kathryn Budding, who I haven't actually met... but I love her playfulness on the mat. I love her sequencing, I love her silliness. She is a combination of grace, strength and FUN! I hope to someday get to practice with her.
Finally, Kathy McNames is my current mentor and role model. She also makes me laugh. She has demonstrated what it means to be a good human. She is also a wealth of knowledge... but completely different from Kate. Kate knows anatomy, functional movements, and ways to heal certain areas of the body. Kathy knows the myths of the asanas, the kleshas, pranayama, things about yoga that I feel like I've just scratched the surface of. I love being around Kathy. I feel good just by being in the room with her.
One of the things I love about teaching yoga, is the way people's postures/demeanors change from when they walk in the room to when they walk out. I love seeing that change and knowing that I have helped in some small way to bring them a degree of release. Teaching teachers is another wonderful aspect of teaching because I get to deep dive into a lot of different topics while prepping for for the classes. This aspect peaks my curiosity.
And yes, one of the most challenging things about being a yoga teacher, is honestly finding time to practice! When I essentially just taught yoga and swimming, I was at the studio a lot, and there were TONS of classes, so I had no problem practicing... but coming back to a small town, where all the classes start at the same time, and my schedule is sort of random... It's hard to get on my mat as much as I'd like.
Honestly, the thing that has always struck me about yoga is the age defying aspect of it.
During my first teacher training, my teacher's teacher came down to visit. She was in her mid 70's and her hair, although silver was thick and shiny. She was still giggling when she stood on her head. Diane, my teacher was in her mid 50's and move with grace and strength. Kathy, also in her 50's, plays daily. She stands on her hands, reads us stories, and dresses in tutus. One of my classmates from my second teacher training had her third child when she was 43, and practiced power yoga the whole time. Yoga to me is medicine. It keeps our minds and bodies alive and well.
How I see yoga changing the world comes from knowing Kathy. I just want to be able to cultivate that much love and acceptance for everyone. If we could all learn that from yoga, I think the world would be a much better place.
