Page 72 of Big Island Weddings
Lord, but she was in amood.
Maybe shedidneed yoga.
“Good morning, everybody,” a woman sang out from the front of the class. She looked to be nearly as tall as ‘Olena was, maybe even the same height, but she was built like a ballerina. She moved like one too, with an effortless grace that made her seem weightless. Long dreads flowed down to her lower back, and tattoos swirled across her shoulders.
“Welcome to my all-levels yoga class! I’m Fern. If you forget, just look here!” She held up her forearm, where a green frond unfurled from her wrist to her elbow.
“I see a couple new faces, so everyone else bear with me as I do a quick welcome spiel. This is an all level class, and everyone is welcome regardless of their level of experience.
“I don’t believe in taking a prescriptivist approach to yoga. In this class, there’s no right or wrong. I’ll speak up if I see you doing something that could get you injured, and I might make suggestions about ways that you can go deeper into a stretch, but no pose ever has to look a certain way.
“You’re here to sink into your body and move in a way that feels right to you. If it hurts to stretch beyond a certain point, ease back. If you can go farther than me, go farther. If you want to sink into child’s pose at any point or rest in shavasana, go for it!
“Only you know what your body needs. Okay? We’re on the same page?” She waited for a general murmur of agreement, then grinned and threw her arms wide. “Good! Let’s get started!”
As Fern led them through a series of poses, ‘Olena felt herself slowly relaxing into her body. The class was so quiet that shecould hear the wind blowing through the albizia trees in the next lot, and she heeded Fern’s reminders to focus on her breath.
In… and out. And in… and out.
For the first time in forever, ‘Olena focused on her own body, on her muscles and her breath. It felt like coming home to herself.
By the time they finished their meditation at the end of class, her body was buzzing with zen.
“So?” Juniper asked as they rolled up their mats. “What did you think?”
“I liked it,” ‘Olena answered.
Juniper giggled. “You sound so surprised.”
“I am,” she said honestly.
“Well, I’m glad you came.”
“So am I. Thank you for inviting me.”
“Hold that thought! I’ve gotta see a man about a plant.” She sprung up and ran to intercept a man who was walking away with his yoga mat tucked under one arm. He looked to be about seventy, with a white beard and long gray hair.
“Should I be worried?” ‘Olena asked Emma.
“No.” She shook her head and smiled. “She’s planting her own herb garden. Cleared out an overgrown piece of land and planted tons of mamaki and hibiscus and butterfly pea. Zephyr offered to give her some Holy Basil.”
“Zephyr?” ‘Olena protested.
Emma just shrugged.
Juniper danced back over and picked up her mat. “He says we can follow him home to pick up the starts. Can we, Auntie Em?”
“Sure, we can do that.” Emma hugged ‘Olena, heedless of the sweat that had soaked through her tank top. “See you tomorrow.”
“Are you going to come to yoga again?” Juniper asked, already walking backwards towards the parking lot.
“Yeah,” ‘Olena said, surprising herself. “I think I will.”
27
Lani
“Ididn’t think it was possible to pull a wedding together faster than I did,” ‘Olena said, “but you proved me wrong.”
