What’s On Your Mat?

You don’t need to bring much to a yoga class – your mat, a couple of towels (one for the mat and maybe one to wipe the leftover mascara that streaks down your face cheeks) and water… it’s a pretty simple setup.  What catches me by surprise every time are all the little things that show up with me that I didn’t know were going to be a part of my practice that day. I could never predict from one day to the next what bonus item I will find- it is like a secret Santa gift to me over and over again (probably more like a white elephant gift, really).

Cheeto crumbs

Being scolded for talking too far into the beginning of class is nothing new for me.  Sometimes it is a matter of finishing up a really good story, other times it is a totally legit reason – like finding Cheetos scattered across the top of my mat.  Not only did I have to tell my yoga neighbors, but in my moment of incredulous discovery I exclaimed to the whole class “But there are Cheetos on my mat!”  No doubt the Cheetos came from Casa de Rohr and I was not eating the Cheetos on my mat.  Well, not that day anyway.  My best guess is that this was actually a squeaky clean Cheeto – a missed puff hidden deep down in my son’s pants pocket that went through the laundry and came out all wrapped up in my yoga towel.  A more nagging question is how could it really still be that orange after a hot wash cycle?

Underwear

I’m not always ready to share my latest finds with the class or even the mat next door.  Far too many times I have unfolded my mat towel out before class and various pieces of undergarments have snapped out with it.  It is one thing when an unmentionable is pretty, it is quite another when it is the old gals that are designed for one purpose only – comfort.  That creates a panic and mad scramble – more than once I have found myself in a crescent lunge to retrieve my skivvies.  Damn that static cling!

Hair

Dog hair.  My hair.  Your hair.  I can fall out of Warrior Three faster than an exhausted hot yogi, obsessively picking it from my towel.  I’ll even gag from time to time…hello focus?

Holes

Imagine my surprise when I realized my 110 pound yellow lab Fletch made an appearance in class.  Fletch came from a farm in SC and

the transition to life in suburbia has been, well, interesting.  He is a hunting dog so smells literally can drive him insane – especially anything dirty that smells like his people.  He hit the jackpot when he sniffed out a bag of sweaty yoga towels left on my bathroom floor.  If the smell is “good” enough, and no doubt it was that day, he has to give it a little chew.  What’s a dog to do?  In my case he had to chew a giant hole in the middle of my towel – you know, right where the most crotch sweat has ended up.  I am sure he enjoyed every minute … it is now my favorite towel to bring to class.

The best thing I find on my mat?  The laughter that comes with living life.  All the hair and the holes.  The static cling and the snack foods.  Laughing our way through certainly eases some of the embarrassment.  Next time I am a bit chatty at the front of the room, pay close attention. Who knows what may have just flown off of my mat…and maybe even worse, onto yours.

xo,

Trish

What’s the craziest thing you’ve ever found on your mat? I’d love to hear about it!

Don’t miss out on a post – sign up to receive our new blog posts delivered right to your inbox!