Yesterday a student came to chat to me after class. He stood on my yoga mat. I tried really hard not to, but in the end I had to ask him to get off. Uptight behaviour? Probably. It's just that my mat seems like an extension of me, and standing on it without permission is a lot like standing on my toe without permission. The poor man was somewhat taken aback, as I usually seem quite relaxed.
I never stand on people's mats unless I am giving an adjustment, or the class is so crowded it is impossible not to. I wouldn't want to step on their toes. For the rest of the day, I noticed the mat behaviour of other people. Interestingly, nobody else stood on my mat. They stepped around it, or stood on the floor next to it if they wanted to chat. Now I don't deliberately tell people I have a 'mat thing', so how did they get there?
I think it may be an issue of boundaries and personal space - different for all of us, and issues always arise when one personal has different ideas of personal space to another.
I would love to know what you all think!
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Get OFF the mat!
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4 comments:
Mats are personal property, and in my opinion, people should respect the personal property of others. It feels a bit like using something of mine without permission to me. Needless to say I agree with you on that one.
You're being totally reasonable to make people stay off your mat. I don't want to touch other people's foot sweat.
I've had similar experiences of being protective of my space. Something about people throwing their towels and water bottles onto my mat and then not thinking twice about it gets me. But, letting the emotional attachment go is also very much a part of the practice, too. I'd say, be forgiving.
Thank you KB!
I also suspect I am losing a little bit of perspective. That said, I am where I am. One step at a time. Pun intended.
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