AN INTERVIEW WITH ESTHER by Janet Penley

JP: Esther, there is a lot of interest in yoga today but when you started there were not very many people who had even heard of yoga. What was your first experience with yoga?
EV: It was in the early 1950's. I was vacationing with some friends who were taking yoga classes in Mexico. I'd never heard about it before, so I asked them what it was about. They showed me "Lion Pose", which I thought was funny.

JP: Who was your first yoga teacher?
EV: It is customary to pay homage to your first teacher, and mine was Betty Greer. She was an Army wife stationed at Ft. Sam Houston. I took my first class in 1967. Betty was a visual teacher; she simply demonstrated the poses. I made a mental commitment to myself that when I was a teacher I would teach with words too and talk people through the postures. I think it helps them make the mind-body connection better.

JP: When did you start teaching yoga?
EV: I started teaching in 1968. I was in my early fifties. I taught the classes in my house. I would move the furniture and we would practice in the living room. I taught two classes a week, one during the day and one at night. I also taught at churches and at UTSA. I called my classes "Stretching for Health" because yoga seemed strange to many people; they just didn't understand what yoga is.

JP: When did you cross paths with Judith Lasater, who is now an author and internationally acclaimed yoga teacher?
EV: Judith is from Texas. I met her in 1975. She taught a class for expectant mothers down at Hemisphere Plaza. She was very pregnant and in her class she taught breathing and relaxation techniques for labor and delivery. This grew into her teaching of Restorative Yoga.
(Judith will come to San Antonio as the guest of the Esther Vexler Yoga School on Nov. 21, 2008 for a public workshop. Details will be posted on the website.)

JP: Was there a turning point where you realized yoga was a life path for you?
EV: I never experienced an "aha" moment where suddenly I was a yogi. I knew that physical exercise got me going, and yoga in particular made me feel good. I noticed that my yoga practice was making me more alert and aware throughout my day. I observed the connection between my mind and body. That awareness grew incrementally over time. Nothing happens all at once.

JP: Do you think of yoga as a spiritual practice?
EV: My practice of yoga has helped me have a relationship with a higher power. Over time, I realized yoga and my own religious faith, Judaism, had much in common. In Hebrew, the word for spirit also means breath. In yoga, we stress the importance of the breath. As a Jew, I was taught the value of "tikkun oalm", which translates into "repair the world". I think that is part of yoga too.

JP: What is your favorite yoga pose?
EV: Shoulder Stand. I used to do it after a long day, before going out again at night. I felt so enlivened! Nowadays, at my doctor's request, I no longer practice inversions.

JP: What are your thoughts on yoga and aging?
EV: Yoga has helped me deal with the changes in my body as I've aged. I am 90 years old! I've recovered from five operations faster than I think I would have without yoga. I practice yoga every day. I do a few Sun Salutations, but not in the most maximum way. You don't have to do much, or strain yourself, to reap the benefits. The true measure of a successful practice is persistence.

JP: Do you want to live to be 100?
EV: Yes. I'd like to see my grandchildren married and welcome some great grandchildren into the family. I am one of nine children. All my sisters and brothers are gone. My husband, Harold, is very much alive at 94. My mother lived to 96.

JP: What is the #1 thing you want your students to leave class with?
EV: Serenity. People tend to be very scattered these days; especially young mothers. In my classes I teach what I call the yoga ABC's: Awareness, Breathing, and Centering. I always try to foster positive thinking. The body responds to positive thoughts. Usually we talk to ourselves negatively…"I'm slumping", "I can't do it", "My neck hurts". I want my students to be full of happiness and liveliness, not negativity.

JP: What advice would you give other yoga teachers?
EV: Lead from your heart. It's twice as good as leading from your brain. The heart has wisdom and genuineness. When you are in an open-hearted place, then you and your students are one.

JP: What words of wisdom would you like to leave with us?
EV: Everything is connected. I used to say it, but now I feel it.