I went and saw Jerome tonight. I don't see him often. He's French. Half the time I can't even understand what he's saying. Full beard, bald, icy blue eyes that pierce through me when he looks into my eyes.
He came up to me. We were face to face. "Leeft your heeps! Higher! That's it!" I was in side plank when he came up to me to bark orders at me about how to do the pose correctly. I sweat more than normally in his yoga session. I'm kind of scared of him. I only go see Jerome with SG, because she is hard core like he is.
After about a million downward dogs and chatarangas, chair poses, and warrior 3's into warrior 2's, I was starting to feel relieved we were nearing the end. And then... it happened. He forced me into camel. I stayed on my knees, while everyone else dropped back and reached for their heels. I could hear his footsteps right behind me and felt a drop of sweat roll down my neck. "Thrrow your head bahk. Expose your neck! Shine your heart fahrward! R-r-reach back to your ahnkles." I whispered, "I can't. I'll throw up." "You mahst trry. Just trry!" Then he stood in front of me and put his hands on my hips and used his thumbs to push me back. And there I was, dropped back in camel. "Brrreathe. You mahst brreeathe. Releeease your tentshun in your lower bahk."
I breathe because I'm scared. I'm exposed and trying REALLY hard not to puke all over the nice wood floors. And when I try to come back up, he won't let me. Then suddenly, I feel my hips bust forward (ok busting forward in yoga is like 2 cm of movement), and I'm not sure if it's pain or relief, but it's progress. I'm not sure if it's going to be good or bad progress. I just know that it is what it is. Just keep breathing.
"Very good," he says, and walks away, while I'm still stuck in camel.
