Dear Friends,
Do you remember?
All of us have a distinct memory of when our lives really changed because of the pandemic.
For me, it was Friday, March 13, 2020. Friday the 13th.
This was literally taken the day before at our Thursday morning, sweaty and crowded, Stop Drop And Dance class at Marin Power Yoga. We were recording a tutorial to the song, "Oh Go," for our new YouTube channel.
Awww...
Boy, do I miss this.
Granted, by this point, I had stopped incorporating high fives in dance class, as well as no more hands-on adjustments in my yoga classes, but most of us had kept our routines and were not afraid of this "Covid-19"...
Yet.
Then came the simultaneous announcement that very evening, from my daughters' schools and Marin Power Yoga, cancelling classes. Even Disneyland and the NBA... everything just... stopped.
And our new way of living, began.
When I look back at my photos on that first day when everything changed and my girls and I had no school or work, that was also the first day we started playing family board games after dinner. The silver linings.
And on that first day, I also decided to not let "shelter in place" stop me from teaching.
So 2 days later, I looked into and attempted something totally foreign and new to most of us, Zoom.
Welcome to the IT Department.
Should I laugh or cry?
Exactly one year ago, on Sunday, March 15, 2020, I taught my first Zoom class.
My living room became the studio. My girls became my backup dancers. My internet was unstable. My music was too soft. My synchronization between video and audio was off.
But...
I remember how heartwarming it felt to SEE everyone's faces and to be able to say hi and smile at each other. I remember feeling so happy to be in community, even virtually. I remember that it was the hope and healing I needed, especially after being absolutely addicted to reading the awful news about the destruction of Covid-19.
One year later...
Sure, I miss teaching in a toasty, indoor space with a ton of sweaty people. I miss giving hands-on adjustments in all my yoga classes. I miss all my students who I used to see each and every week for years, but haven't seen at all in this last year. I miss my co-workers and the studios I belonged to.
And don't get me started about all that I miss about being with family and friends...
But I am grateful for where we are now.
Rain on me.
If this past year has been symbolic of rain falling down on us, then we have been dancing in the rain all year long, and it won't stop us (Thank you Susannah for capturing this photo on Tuesday with Danusia and Lizzy getting soaked!).
I couldn't have predicted any of this "hybrid" online and in-person teaching, or that I would learn to set up all my equipment - from speakers to mixers to battery inverters? - by myself, or that I would remodel my garage to become my recording studio, or that I would create a Power With Grace membership website...
But that's what happened, and here we are.
Join us on Zoom. Join us in-person. Join us on-demand.
(Stop Drop And Dance™, TRX, HIIT, Bootcamp, Power Yoga, Gentle Yoga, Yin Yoga, Yogaburn, 8x8 Series)
You just keep giving back!
Thank you so much for helping to celebrate Susannah's birthday this past Saturday by raising $1205 for Dine11 Marin! The money will go to Magnolia Park Kitchen in San Rafael, who gives meals to the Community Action Marin Child Development Center for families in the canal. Amazing!
Dance for Down Syndrome!
This Saturday, March 20th, we will have another fundraiser hosted by Jessica in honor of her daughter, Cassidy! Please consider donating $21 or any multiple of 21 for the 321 Pledge, which provides individuals with Down Syndrome a chance at higher education. After you donate, you will get a Zoom link to join our 9:30am Stop Drop And Dance class, or come in-person to "The Garage" in Terra Linda! Please spread the word!
Life is a dance.
Do you remember that pre- and post-pandemic moment for you?
Life is a dance stands for all the highs and lows. The successes and failures. The smiles and struggles. Whatever life throws at us, whether it's external or internal, just like a dance, we need to keep moving, flowing, on beat, off beat, we keep dancing. We keep growing. We keep trying. We keep thriving.
"The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new."
- Socrates
Love,
Grace
