It was by chance that I came to study with Roger about a dozen years ago at the Neahtawanta Inn. I came to that first yoga retreat, mostly because it was in Michigan, an easy drive from Lansing, definitely not as daunting as the 12-hour drive I’d done the year before to Kripalu Center. I’d been to Neahtawanta once before, on my first-ever trip to Traverse City the previous Fall, a “color-tour” and chance to visit some wineries on Old Mission Peninsula. The Inn was the only place that had rooms available that Autumn weekend. I’d read that Sally taught yoga, and during the course of our conversations that weekend, she recommended Roger’s yoga retreat the next June.
I was a bit scared that first
time, fearing the “Iyengar” way (I was a long-time Kripalu student then) even
though Sally said that Roger “was different, you’ll like him” not like the
exacting Iyengar methods I’d read about and feared (I’d taken one Iyengar class
and can remember the instructor yelling at us about “snapping” into a pose.).
Thank you, Roger, for being a real
person—my first memories are of you sweeping the floor before class (we
practiced in the living room, by the fireplace back then.). And, wow!—you ate
at the same table as we did! (not like Swami Rama and his entourage, like I’d
seen at the Himalayan Institute or the glorified pictures of Amrit Desai at
Kripalu Center). And it’s been so cool over the years to hear you and Bob
banter together about politics, great to talk to you about basketball,
football, bike riding.
Thank you, Roger, for teaching me
that we are all unique, and that there’s no need to be competitive. You hooked
me into your style about two days into that first retreat. I remember you had
half the class watch the other half in cobra pose, saying something like, “See!
everyone looks different.” I knew then that you were there to help me, you
would always be my teacher.
Thank you, Roger, for letting us
be ourselves—when I went bike-riding and skipped out on those afternoon
sessions, you never got on my case about it. When I came in late to class, you
just said, hi, welcomed me in.
But I was scared again when you changed the “retreats” to “teachers trainings.” Thanks for adding “and for experienced students” to the description, as I didn’t see myself teaching yoga, didn’t think I would ever be “good enough” to do it. For some years, I simply used your teaching methods to be more effective as a computer teacher. Oh yes, you were an inspiration to me in so many aspects of my life, not just in my yoga practice.
Thank you, Roger, for telling me
to go teach yoga. I needed that. It’s been scary but joyful, and I’m learning
more with each new class.
Thank you, Roger, for helping me to
heal. “The body is a song,” I remember you said two summers ago as your own
body was fighting cancer. “We’re just trying to find the right notes.” Last
summer, when I was hurting, thought my leg would hurt for the rest of my life,
you stuck with me and set me on the path to healing. Even though I sometimes
have tiny little twinges of pain in my foot even now (like when I went ice
skating last Sunday!), they don’t last because of the transformational work you
showed me. The energy has come back into my body because of the work you’ve
shown me.
Thank you, Roger, for the way your
teachings have evolved over the years, and admitting that you’re still learning
too. Aren’t we all? Bon voyage—joyful journey! Thank you, great friend and
beloved teacher. I miss you.
With Love,
Ann
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Roger Eischens, the founder of High
Energy Yoga, died on December 15, 2004.