How to sum up the last two months living and teaching in Egypt?
I think this photograph of the Great Sand Sea from my Siwa retreat kind of helps express how I feel about my time in Egypt: the expansiveness of being here, how it just opens things up to the point where there appears to be no limits; the odd pair of peace and bewilderment; the wonder and awe and that just insane “are you for freaking real?” feeling it inspires–along with the sense of unfathomability of its existence.
For me, this is a place where yoga inevitably happens (I think this is true for everywhere, but I am drawn to it here particularly), where the challenges of the day to day pushes one into the karmic battlefield, where the way of the peaceful warrior becomes a tool for survival, where stillness and quiet awaits but only beneath layers and layers of the rubble of civilizations, human chaos, and political instability–but it is there, and the moments of touching it is so incredibly precious, like looking out into the endless Sand Sea.
There is no summing up life. Just like there is no end to the yoga practice. It continues to grow, evolve, there is no end, no boundaries, no limits.
Very grateful for the last couple of months. Special thanks to my host and dear yoga sister Iman (Amy) Elsherbiny, who by opening up her world to me, has helped me open myself. Am very happy to share in her new space The Shala in Maadi. Thank you to Shala partners Lina Almari and Fadi Antaki, beautiful to be seeing you practice! Practice, practice, good things are coming!
To Nun Center, particularly Nada Iskander and Hana Holdijk, for giving me a Zamalek base, and for trusting me to lead their retreat once again.
To my retreat partners: Iman, Freedom Travellers (Yasmine Rifaat and Ahmed El Leisy) and Fekra Cultural Center (Mohamed Elbetity), thank you for the beautiful explorations. I am falling deeper in love with Egypt thanks to our work together.
And, last but not least, to all the students: you inspire me, thank you!
Till next we meet! Inshallah.
one love yoga 