The Way has its Way with Me….

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Yesterday was Mother’s Day. I wanted to attend a sufi master’s workshop, so my son went with me. We had both seen him before. I had built up some resistance, because I knew that his students would be put through some paces they ordinarily didn’t do. Like veil dancing!

As they handed out the veils, I muttered to my son that even the men worked with the veils. He gamely took the one handed to him; it happened to be grass green. Mine was hot pink, Pepto-like in its tone.

I had worked with the veil one other time in his workshop, so I know it is a bit of a job to keep the veil in the air. “You must put your thought into the veil,” he said quietly. All I put into it was my “klutz.”

Not only that, after a certain time of dancing, I tend to wet my pants, so I stopped before it got embarrassing. Now this is a great sufi master, and I emphasize my sub-par dancing with a veil as if to say, “Oy, veil!” It was not his fault nor was it mine. I feel it was an engineering problem with my anatomy.

He also did some fabulously intricate drumming. It has been known to throw students into ecstasy. I am not engineered for ecstasy, either. I tend towards peace, occasionally interrupted by the need for sweets. And he is totally against that, if they come with a wrapper on them. So I am quite green at being a Sufi student.

We chanted and did a long series of stretching exercises. Some people sleep during the whole process. I read where he said that if a student goes into an altered state, they may “sleep like baby rabbits,” which is quite all right with him. I can’t imagine being relaxed enough to go to sleep in anyone’s class. But the lady next to me did, and she snored like a man.

We had a lunch break and then the day wound down around six. My son and I had a barbecue dinner. I chose a side of macaroni and cheese and washed it down with coffee. I know the sufi master would not have countenanced that.

But seriously, I have great respect for this man and would return to work with him again. I tried to make a video about the day, but it kept going out of focus. Rather like I did again and again yesterday. The inner way is fraught with the outer way and often I get in my own way. I can hear you saying, “No way!” And to that I say, “Way!” Namaste….

Vicki Woodyard

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