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| Photo by the beautiful Katie Kaizer. She is an amazing photographer and Journalist. See more of her work at http://www.katiekaizerphotography.com/ |
"Do
you know what seva is? It’s the selfless act of being in service to anyone or
anything that needs your helping hands. The more fully you give yourself to
this calling now, the more amazing your world becomes."
~Stephanie Azaria
~Stephanie Azaria
I pulled into the Cisco beach parking lot a little before
9AM Tuesday morning. A line of surfers was
already present on the water, waiting the moment they might catch The Wave. The
sun was beginning to peek out from the clouds and I was certain this day was
going to be especially beautiful.
I scanned the line of cars for a grey Land-cruiser. An open car door revealed a girl, relaxing, watching
the waves slowing rolling onto the shore.
The back of the truck was open, a few coolers and beach gear barely filling
up the back. I spotted what I was looking for: a set of yoga mats situated in a
‘ready to go’ position. This must be the
girl I was here to meet and she could not appear to be any cooler! I grabbed my trash bag and headed over to the
car.
The woman’s feet moved and a petite dark brown-haired woman
emerged from the truck. “You must be
Dorothy.” She had a sweet, calm and easy nature that instantly put me in
relaxed mode. She lifted her sunglasses
to greet me, and her natural beauty radiated from within.
“No make-up and stunning.
She’s a true Yogi,” I thought to myself as we finished our introductions. We spoke for a while as we waited to see if
any other participants would arrive.
When it was looking as though it would be just the two of us, I was sure
she was going to call it off until another time…why clean the beach and teach a
class with just one person?
Samantha Rudofsky, has started a new initiative called Karma "Yoga on the Rock", which is open to anyone who
wishes to participate. Willing and able
bodies may meet at Cisco beach parking lot on Tuesdays at 9AM for a half hour
of beach clean-up. Then, rewarding
people’s efforts, Samantha will teach a free yoga class. Karma
"Yoga on the Rock" is all about giving back to the community and the Earth.
After five or ten minutes had passed, she looked at me and
said, “Shall we start?” Surprised and
excited, I clutched my trash bag and followed her to the beach. We started to walk along the dunes. At first we were finding small pieces of
debris. As we picked up the cigarette
butts and small pieces of paper, Samantha and I continued our chat. I wanted to know more about her…why she was
doing what she was doing. Where she was
from? I’d never seen her before, but we
have many mutual Facebook friends. I
wanted to know why she was doing Karma
Yoga. Being an Island girl, my
appreciation for the island is deeply rooted in my veins. More often than not, I see visitors to
Nantucket have two notions in mind: Make money, and party. They work whatever job they came here to do
and partake in the nightlife/beach life.
Once the air starts to become cooler and the island population begins to
diminish, so do the people who say they ‘love’ Nantucket so much. It’s a rarity to see someone so focused on
giving back. Samantha was pleased by the
very fact that I showed up. She honored
me in that moment.
I was entranced when Samantha started to explain her
inspiration for Karma "Yoga on the Rock".
Samantha, who is the founder of Guru Chakra, LLC ~ Om Ack said, “There’s more to yoga than just poses,” as she picked
up a piece of plastic off the beach and placed the debris in her trash bag. As we got deeper into the conversation, I
realized the place Samantha was coming from was Love. Love of Nantucket, love of community, love of
the Earth, a sheer love of life and everything living.
At the very moment of feeling in awe of Samantha and what
drives her, I discover that we are collecting quite a bit of trash off the beach. When I first felt the sand between my feet
this morning, the thought that traveled through my mind was “How much can two
people really do? How much trash are we
really going to collect? Will this even
make a difference?” My bag was starting
to become heavier and I realized just what two people could really do. Samantha hadn’t even started the yoga class
and already I was learning something.
Two other women soon joined us. The four of us went up and down the beach
collecting various items that were either left behind or had washed ashore. I was shocked by some of the items we found. In half an hour of cleaning, we found a large
green chair, a full fisherman’s net, and a plastic bag from a supermarket full
of apples, a large rusty tin can, and a plethora of deflated balloons, and so
on. The beach looked relatively clean
before we started but to my surprise, it didn’t take long to fill up our trash
bags.
Once the trash had been collected we took a break. Samantha brought fresh watermelon and water
infused with lemons to quench our thirst.
We nibbled on the watermelon and sipped the much-needed refreshing water
before gathering our yoga mats and heading down the beach. With yoga mat, water bottle and towel in hand,
I found I had difficulty making my way through the pliable sand. If I am hardly able to walk in the sand, how
am I going to practice yoga? I hadn’t
taken a yoga class in years and I was beginning to get nervous.
Samantha picked a spot that was semi-shielded from the
wind. We staggered our yoga mats and she
began the class. (I thought, “Forgive me,
Universe, for it has been years since my last real yoga class.”) Even though I was slightly embarrassed by my
lack of correct body alignment, Samantha was an ever humble and understanding
teacher, reminding us all that the most important thing to remember was our
breathing. After her calming voice stated
this, I listened to my body. There were
multiple occasions when I couldn’t hold the simplest of poses and I moved my
body into child’s pose. It felt
right. I listened to my body, and
focused on my breath. At the end of the class, the other students and I were in
a fetal position on our sides. I had my
eyes closed and fell into the yoga trance.
Participating in yoga on the beach is an experience I have
come to find challenging, while at the same time addicting. The natural elements, wind and sand, force
one to be in the moment and work a little harder to stay standing. While other natural forces like the crashing
ocean waves, sunshine and slowly moving clouds allowed for a mesmerizing
backdrop. While barely being able to hold
myself in a pose, I glanced up to the sky to see the brightest shade of blue I
have ever seen. I could feel my body
sway with the wind and I could hear small, gentle waves meet the
shoreline. The atmosphere had an almost
lullaby/rocking effect that I found serene.
I left that morning looking forward to next Tuesday’s class. Thank you, Samantha for the gift of your time
and showing me how I can give more of myself.
To sign up for Tuesday’s class email her at
samantha@omnantucket.com
Samantha teaches Yoga and Pilates at The Studio on Nantucket as well private classes.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GuruChakraLLC
Website: http://www.guru-chakra.com/
(Will be up and running soon.)
~Namaste~
This post is also on Nantucket Chronicle under Wellness/Yoga.
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