On Meditation, with Ceri the Yogi

We had an excellent Yoga teacher at the Yoga Forest for a week.  She was scheduled for longer   Her name was Ceri (pronounced just like Carrie) and she came from the UK.  I think she was the most advanced teacher I've ever had.  She introduced a half dozen binds I'd never seen before.  If you don't know what a bind is, just know they're really hard and 

A few days earlier, I had taught a few friends a favorite card game from back home, Pitch.  My hilarious buddy Blake was very taken with the game and was always trying to drum up a game by asking in his native Australian English, "Pitch?".  Timing is everything here. 

A few days into her stay, Ceri was laid up with an eye infection that rendered one eye swollen shut.  Charlie the architect recommended using chamomile tea bags to be placed on the eye (after steeping) as a remedy.  This did the trick and the next day she was much improved.  This happened to be first big day of the Africanized Killer Bee attacks and Ceri was stung twice on her exit from a respite in Cat's quarters.  She made her way over to Cabana #1 where six of us had taken refuge from the angry pollenators.  She seemed in good spirits upon entry and asked "What's up with these bees?"  Around then, a bee in her hair and one on her leg began buzzing.  Ceri completely melted down.  How can I say this better?  Ceri absolutely lost her shit.  She screamed "Get them off of me!  Get them off of me! I can't take it here anymore." etc.  She shook and convulsed out of control.  I was so grateful there were four women in the room who could take a hold of her, remove the bees and try to calm her down.  She eventually stopped screaming and her sobbing was the only sound in the room. 

"Anyone for Pitch?", says Blake.  I experienced uproarious laughter on the inside while Blake accepted scornful reproach from several of the women.

Ceri, who stayed in the other bed on the ground floor of Cabana #1, told me in the morning that she would be teaching Yoga that day.  After Yoga, she informed everyone that she would be leaving that day. We've been asking Petrona to present a bigger salad at lunch, because it's a healthy crowd that likes to eat a lot of the fresh salad picked on the premises.  She sent out a good haul, but nine people made a pretty big crowd at lunch that day.  As often happens, I served myself first what seemed like maybe 1/9th of the salad from the soup pot.  Ceri served herself thereafter taking scoop after scoop after scoop piling up on her plate about half of what was left for her and the other seven people.  Ceri chewed really well and ate even slower than Uncle Gusti.  Long after everyone else had a clean plate, Ceri still had more salad than everyone else started with.  This was a big topic of conversation after her departure and it was hard to imagine how a 34 year-old woman who's been traveling for 13 straight years could've performed this blunder but maybe Blake was right when he summed it up by saying in perfect Australian English, "She's a total dick."

Here's a bonus photo attesting related to the killer bees, though it's myself, not Ceri:

Now to the meat of the post: here's what Ceri had to say, paraphrased, when I inquired on how a newbie should approach meditation:

"Do it after Yoga.  Yoga is only the body breaking through physical barriers, which are also mental barriers, in preparation to aid in meditation.  Sit in a comfortable, seated position with your spine as straight as possible.  Do not try to fight against thoughts coming into your mind, but let each thought that comes float away like a passing cloud in the sky.  Try 10 minutes and try not to move."

I do appreciate that advice and the rest she offered me.  I liked Ceri more and more the longer she stayed and I think the salad event was just an abberation caused by her multiple ailments.  I wish her much better luck in all her future stops than what she had with us.