something’s gone terribly wrong

When we boarded the plane for Koh Samui, a guy in the front row had a t-shirt we both noticed. It was the classic human evolution drawing you would have seen many times, with the first drawing of an ape, walking with hunched shoulders, knuckles dragging on the ground, the next neandrathal man, with stooped shoulders, followed by homo erectus, who had a slightly better posture. And finally homo sapien, shoulders back, neck long, walking tall. The last image was different – the artists view of our current state of evolution. It was a guy hunched over in front of the computer, shoulders collapsed, an uncanny resemblance to the ape in the first image.

The tagline was “something’s gone terribly wrong.”

We were on the way to a yoga retreat on Koh Samui. Yoga Thailand - run by a fellow who is a certified teacher in “mysore style” Ashtanga yoga. I am late on the yoga train – I could count the number of times I’ve done sun salutes on two hands. Julia is much more experienced, and I have always appreciated her approach to the practice as one dedicated to strengthening the inner spirit, along with your muscles.

I did know that my neck and shoulders were feeling far too much like the guy on the t-shirt. Pain and tightness driving. Pain and tightness sitting at the computer. Neck too tight to look over my own shoulder comfortably. My body was this way so long, it felt normal.

I am guessing that given the way we slave in front of the screen these days, many many of us experience this kind of tightness and pain. Something indeed has gone terribly wrong.

We have been at the yoga retreat for four days. We loved the food and wine in Italy, but didn’t really like the soft rings the pasta left around our middles. Here, we eat “clean” food – organic, vegetarian, not too spicy. We get up at 0630 to do breathing and meditation for an hour. And then onto the yoga itself.

It is hot and sweaty here all the time. I don’t really know what I’m doing. My so-called “poses” are miles behind everyone else. But after these four days of trying to stretch a little bit further, sit a little bit taller, and breathe, the tension in my neck and shoulders is almost gone. I am amazed.

In the afternoons, our teacher – a very knowledgeable and practiced guy called Clayton Horton – answers questions we might have, and then leads us through a few postures. We finish up about 615. Today, he looked outside as we were finishing, and said “bring your mats everybody, quick!” We did. “Sit somewhere where you can see the sun setting.”

So we all sat there on the beach, and watched the big red ball. It made me think of a warrior, now peaceful, steadily dropping his shield. As we sat, a small motorized fishing boat chugged across the rippling water. The boat crossed in front of the sun as it grazed the horizon, in splendid silhouette. The sound of its engine faded as the sun set.

And all the while I thought, something is terribly right here.