Welcome

How does yoga go beyond the bending? I asked Jamie Himler to tell her yoga story. I conducted interviews with Jamie and found a common theme in her life: her day to day spirituality. These are the spiritual thoughts of Jamie and some of her friends. Thank you for sharing your spiritual journey with me.

Yogis in a Tree

Environmental Protection junior Jamie Himler practices yoga outside of the arboretum on Cal Poly’s campus. She prefers this spot because of the nature that surrounds her. Himler practices regularly because it “makes her feel energized and happy.” Jamie started yoga because it was accessible to her. “I wanted to try yoga just because it was available and it just felt so good. The way that I felt after I left the room from when I entered the room, it was like, I felt more of myself,” Himler said.

Tree yoga is one of Jamie’s favorite yoga practices. Jamie says, “I can do so much more when I am in a tree because it is supporting me.”

Nutrition Science junior Maya Smigel joins Jamie in tree yoga. The two friends met through Cal Poly yoga club. Jamie has been practicing yoga for four years, while Maya has been practicing yoga almost her entire life. “Tree yoga is just so much fun,” Smigel said while laughing in her yoga pose.

Calvin, Maya, and Jamie are all yogi regulars. Calvin practices meditation regularly while Jamie and Maya practice yoga regularly. The three come together by practicing tree yoga with one another. “It is like a strong person that can hold you up and you know that that person is so strong, I am calling it a person, but it is just life in a different form and you feel so supported and connected to the earth,”said Himler.

Maya Smigel’s favorite pose is the scorpion pose. “I love this pose because you get to see a different side of the world upside down,” said Smigel.

Jamie is constantly using yoga ideals in her daily routine. “I wish that everyone felt how happy and energized I feel,” said Jamie. Practicing yoga in trees only makes her experience more unique. “You are so observant when you are doing yoga of little details and all of the different arches and crevasse of the tree, you really feel like you are becoming one with the tree when you are up there for long enough,” said Himler.

Biology fifth-year, Calvin Tower tries to be in a meditative state throughout his entire day. Calvin says, “The longest I have meditated for was eight hours in a day or more for 10 days in a row.” “My goal over the last few years has been trying to enter a meditative space for as much of my day as possible,” continued Calvin.

Jamie and Calvin began meditating for 10 minutes. After the two completed their meditation, Jamie and Calvin sat and talked for an hour about the feeling of nature meditation. Jamie says,“I think another reason why i love being in nature and doing yoga nature is because I feel like doing yoga brings me back to a harmonious state with nature. My spirit becomes more intune with the natural energy with peace and love and tranquility.”

Calvin says, “Lots of focus is maintained in meditation if you enjoy the thing that you are focusing on. If you attach joy to it naturally our mind stays on that enjoyment.”

The three yogis bond over simplicity. “I wish that people could live a simpler life, they would be so much happier if they did,” Jamie said. Maya, Calvin, and Jamie laughed for hours while in their practice.

|Photo Credit| Jessica Sharpe

The Yogi Wake Up

Yoga has given Jamie a new perspective on life as well as the place she calls her home: the funkadelic tree house.

Click on each image to hear three yogis explain how the yoga bond brought each of them to the funkadelic tree house.

The Yogi Talk

Jamie Himler reveals her deepest yogi secrets. Whether is it why she decided to start her yoga practice or how yoga has shaped her mentality...Himler reveals it all.

The Yogi Scoop

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