At the end of Bikram day in Boston I find myself safely cuddled up on my daughter's couch, HGTV on the telly, glass of red wine and a bag of Trader Joes licorice on the table beside me. The couch is next to a picture window that looks down on the street below from this fourth floor perch. It's a warm rainy night and twinkle lights and streetlights are beautiful on the wet pavement. A perfect place to write and sort out the thoughts of the day. (I feel like I'm in a cozy treehouse)
Bikram day began with Bloody Marys and brunch on Newbury St and ended with dinner and Snickers Martinis for desert at Whiskey's on Boylston. In between was the great Bikram Choudary at the John Hancock Hall. I didn't quite know what to expect of this program today, but doing Bikram five days a week for 21 months, I figured I'd like to see the guy who invented this yoga in person just once. Let's just say I'm still scratching my head and trying to make heads or tails of the experience.
After two hours of him talking, I still didn't quite get his message because there was no rhyme or reason to what he was saying. It was just a constant stream of random thoughts that my organized mind had trouble following.
After the second two hours (yes, it was four hours long) I felt a funnel forming in my brain and I had to sift through his words to find some meaning. My overall impression? The man is a good man. He truly believed he was put on this earth to help people. He researched and invented something that for pennies a day will keep you well and healthy for your entire life. His biggest complaint? We don't take advantage of it. For a 90 minute a day investment he's offering a life free of disease and medication and the answer to the fountain of youth simply by moving your body a certain way and cleansing it thoroughly from the inside each day and he can't understand why this isn't important to everybody and they don't make it a priority part of their day like showering and brushing your teeth.
He is also a very wealthy man due to his invention. Many super stars and presidents have taken advantage of his knowledge and expertise. I liked what he said about having all that wealth. He enjoys it. We should all enjoy the fruits of our labor, without guilt about having it, as long as we remember the real reason we're put on earth – to help others be the best they can be. I give him credit. He could just as easily sit in his mansion in Beverly Hills and look at his wealth, yet he's out there working tirelessly to try to get people to see what they are doing to themselves. His mission is self-care as a way of uniting the body, mind and spirit and have them coexist harmoniously to keep us heathy.
It was a great day. A lot of people from our Cape Cod studio were there and it'll be fun to go back this week and see what they thought.
And so, as another day goes by, I'll check one off the bucket list, sip the wine, watch Mike Holmes fix another house, and ….I have written.
“After two hours of him talking, I still didn’t quite get his message because there was no rhyme or reason to what he was saying. It was just a constant stream of random thoughts that my organized mind had trouble following. ”
Yes, exactly!
And I agree that he’s a good egg. I’m glad that came across in person.