And then my life imploded...
It's interesting to pop back in here from time to time. For years and years and years, my life plodded on exactly the same, sort of like 'Groundhog' day.
And then, for a very brief period in spring of 2016 (shortly after I wrote the previous entry), I hit the sweet spot. I had it all. My yoga business (and yoga practice) was thriving, my dog (though ageing) was in good health. I met somebody wonderful and we were talking about marriage. For that rare and precious interval, I reached Peak Lifeplan.
That's when it all crashed. It was like a house of cards that had miraculously reached great heights, but the lightest breath of wind hit it and BOOM.
It started with the death of my dog. Then my relationship floundered. And then, compounding all of the other heartaches, my business collapsed. My primary client went out of business, another client lost their funding and suddenly I was scrambling. I gave it my best shot through the winter months, but by spring I knew I had to find a Plan B.
About 10 years ago, I had worked a short-term contract at a job I absolutely adored, related to law. I was thoroughly smitten with the work, my boss, the atmosphere in my office - but my business, which I had also been diligently building, was taking off. I was faced with a choice. I could let go of teaching and accept a full-time position with the Big Boss, or continue to teach yoga. In the end, chose the latter.
I've never regretted it. I honestly believed my business wouldn't last a year and I would be back at Big Office. Big Boss had asked me to keep in touch. The following summer, as my business was floundering along (summers were always slow), I read a few books and toyed with the idea of going back to school and taking a position at the Big Office. But I kept going with the teaching and it sustained me for a year, then another, then another. I begin to think that I would teach yoga forever.
It's now 11 years later and to my great surprise, I'm doing that thing I dreamt about the summer I left Big Office. NEVER underestimate the power of a little seed planted. Mine took 11 years to germinate, but here we are...
Last spring, I made the difficult decision to shut down my business, refer my classes to other teachers and by September, I was back in school with the Millenials. It's been a year of change, growth, and many, many statutes, regulations and judicial decisions. I'm in an accelerated programme, which means that I'm doing twice the number of classes in a given semester.
It's been brutal. My days begin at 6 am and I'm often not home until close to 9 pm. I'm broke and living off of offerings from my parents. But it's also been fun, fascinating and rewarding. I've learned a lot about the law. I've learned even more about people.
I've grown fond of my classmates and by the end of semester two, I am feeling entirely at ease with this generation of people. I adore my Millenials. I move through the college that I belong. I've shed my sense of alienation from the student body and in the process, I feel younger myself (but in the positive sense).
I finish up in August. In order to qualify for licensing from the Law Society, I must complete a placement term under a lawyer and then I'll write the exam. And then I'll be a licensed paralegal in Ontario, which (unlike almost all other jurisdictions) will allow me to act as counsel for clients in the lower courts and tribunals.
And there's more, but I don't want to jinx myself. Let's just say I seem to find myself moving in full circles these day. ;-)
And then, for a very brief period in spring of 2016 (shortly after I wrote the previous entry), I hit the sweet spot. I had it all. My yoga business (and yoga practice) was thriving, my dog (though ageing) was in good health. I met somebody wonderful and we were talking about marriage. For that rare and precious interval, I reached Peak Lifeplan.
That's when it all crashed. It was like a house of cards that had miraculously reached great heights, but the lightest breath of wind hit it and BOOM.
It started with the death of my dog. Then my relationship floundered. And then, compounding all of the other heartaches, my business collapsed. My primary client went out of business, another client lost their funding and suddenly I was scrambling. I gave it my best shot through the winter months, but by spring I knew I had to find a Plan B.
About 10 years ago, I had worked a short-term contract at a job I absolutely adored, related to law. I was thoroughly smitten with the work, my boss, the atmosphere in my office - but my business, which I had also been diligently building, was taking off. I was faced with a choice. I could let go of teaching and accept a full-time position with the Big Boss, or continue to teach yoga. In the end, chose the latter.
I've never regretted it. I honestly believed my business wouldn't last a year and I would be back at Big Office. Big Boss had asked me to keep in touch. The following summer, as my business was floundering along (summers were always slow), I read a few books and toyed with the idea of going back to school and taking a position at the Big Office. But I kept going with the teaching and it sustained me for a year, then another, then another. I begin to think that I would teach yoga forever.
It's now 11 years later and to my great surprise, I'm doing that thing I dreamt about the summer I left Big Office. NEVER underestimate the power of a little seed planted. Mine took 11 years to germinate, but here we are...
Last spring, I made the difficult decision to shut down my business, refer my classes to other teachers and by September, I was back in school with the Millenials. It's been a year of change, growth, and many, many statutes, regulations and judicial decisions. I'm in an accelerated programme, which means that I'm doing twice the number of classes in a given semester.
It's been brutal. My days begin at 6 am and I'm often not home until close to 9 pm. I'm broke and living off of offerings from my parents. But it's also been fun, fascinating and rewarding. I've learned a lot about the law. I've learned even more about people.
I've grown fond of my classmates and by the end of semester two, I am feeling entirely at ease with this generation of people. I adore my Millenials. I move through the college that I belong. I've shed my sense of alienation from the student body and in the process, I feel younger myself (but in the positive sense).
I finish up in August. In order to qualify for licensing from the Law Society, I must complete a placement term under a lawyer and then I'll write the exam. And then I'll be a licensed paralegal in Ontario, which (unlike almost all other jurisdictions) will allow me to act as counsel for clients in the lower courts and tribunals.
And there's more, but I don't want to jinx myself. Let's just say I seem to find myself moving in full circles these day. ;-)