Have I ever told you that one of my students is a Naturopathic Doctor? Yeah, I have, I looked it up. I told you in the post about messing up, Messing Up Is Fun. I told you about how she had been my student for years before I even knew she was a doctor. Before class I am busy setting up — because there are things that need to be done — just normal things like taking off my socks and shoes, turning on the music, greeting new students, moving things away from the mirror, sweeping the floor, etc. Sometimes even deciding what to teach. Often times reviewing in my head what I am going to teach. And then after there is the cleaning up . . . putting on my socks and shoes, and PAYING ATTENTION to where I put my phone and just the general wrapping up of class, I don’t always get in on the conversations. Not only do I not get to be a part of them, but often times other students miss out on good stuff, too. I had always wanted to gather as a group after class, but when I learned she was a Naturopathic Doctor and I hadn’t know for years then I decided we all HAD to meet after. So there is a day for each of the venues that I teach at where we meet for coffee.
For the Wednesday class in the area of San Jose called Willow Glen we meet on the second to the last Wednesday of the month. We meet at a Peet’s coffee shop down the street from the studio. Period. I always tell my friends and students that is where we will be. They can join us whether they come to class or not. And we have had people do that. It is very nice. There are many reasons why people can’t make it to class, but some have stopped by.
For the Thursday classes we meet on the last Thursday of the month. We meet at a Peet’s coffee shop around the corner from the community center. It was really cool today because we had ten people. That is awesome. That is a big group to have visiting for coffee. More than half the class came to coffee! While we were there, a person we all know showed up because she was planning on meeting someone else at that very spot. She showed up a few minutes early to meet us because she knew we would be there. So the ten turned into twelve for a bit. It was fabulous. So fun.
Not only do I learn about my students and their personal lives, I also get feedback from them. It could DIRECT feedback or just something I pick up from the conversation. Sometimes they mention something that they might not know about Nia and I love that I can take the time to explain it. It is not always possible to get out all the information that can be shared about Nia WHILE you are teaching. So I love to be able to explain. Also, it reminds me that if the person talking doesn’t know that other people probably don’t know either so I can try to find away to let them know in class.
Often times it could be that people didn’t hear what I said, during class. There can be a lot going on in an exercise class, as you may be aware. Sometimes there is a fan in the room that might make it difficult for some to hear. Or there might be people outside that distract us. Or there might be someone walking through class just as I am explaining about something. Could be that one is just so involved in their own dance that they miss something. It is all fine. But I love the opportunity to be able to provide some clarification during our visits.I also really love to hear what is doing on with them. So many stories out there.
It is great to have NiaNow.com because I get a lot of people who are visiting the are that come to my classes. I love that. I always encourage ALL Nia teachers to put their classes on the site. A lot of people like to keep up their movement routine while they are traveling so it is nice for people to be able to find a class near where they are staying. I have a out of town student dancing with us now . . . she came to coffee with us. So fun to experience this!
I have always wanted to have visits after my classes and today I was just so amazed to have such a large group! I am so happy to be so blessed to have such great people in my classes as Nia students. They are definitely people you want to have coffee with.
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