No Two Snowflakes are Alike

I had a memory surface the other day about my very first Barre training.

I was hired by a young woman to train at a boutique studio she was becoming the franchise owner of. We did small-group training for a few months, often with her toddler in tow. I never complained about the distraction, and yes… he was distracting, as children can be sometimes.

When I wasn’t in formal training, I practiced on my own at home. Most of y’all know when I commit to something, I give it 100%.

One night, as I was leaving group training, she pulled me aside and said,“I won’t be able to let you teach until you can perfect a wide second demi plié. Your hips are too tight and aren’t allowing you to fully get into the position.”

She gave me a few hip stretches to work on, and I left.

I went home and cried.

Okay, full disclosure: I don’t have a temper, but I can be super emotional. Those emotions came from the sheer amount of heart and soul I had poured into the process over those months.

I loved the format and wanted so badly to share it.

Just because I don’t look like a ballerina in a wide second demi plié, does that make me an incompetent instructor? Or does it mean I can’t correctly cue my students into the position?

Fun fact, and for the record: I will never get my heels to the mat in Down Dog. One of my favorite yoga instructors once told me, “That is completely fine".

Ha!

Here’s the thing: we are all different in so many ways. That’s what makes us a beautiful community. Our bodies are built to be our own, to be unique, and to be perfectly imperfect.

We leave our egos at the door.

We do not judge ourselves.

We show up.

We commit.

We challenge ourselves.

And we allow space for grace.

Most importantly, we lift each other up with support and encouragement, and we do it in a safe space.

The proof is in the pic, B4 Babes… while I may not have the most “beautiful” wide second demi plié, I can certainly cue You into one. 😉

As fate would have it, I never ended up teaching for that young woman. My husband took an assignment in London, and we moved there.

That year, I spent every day perfecting how I wanted to show up in front of a class. When we returned to the States, I was hired by a lovely couple who owned a Pilates studio and they allowed me to do just that.

Cheers to staying happy, healthy, and fit, my beautiful snowflakes.

xo,

M ❄️