Yoga History in Arlington

Literally "stumbled" into yoga at UTA in 1985 when I taught there and had decided to take a kick-boxing class and arrived to the first class one hour early - a sign of stress - to find students barefoot and stretching instead. I moaned with pleasure the entire class and was hooked forever after (but have since learned to be more quiet and mindful during practice). When the teacher there mentioned that she had a studio a block away I quickly followed her to the actual first yoga center in Tarrant County. I will always remain grateful for her and the center for the incredible instruction and experiences there. We had a yogiji who would come from south India every year or so and she even talked Dharma Mittra to come from Manhattan twice - to teach intensive teacher training workshops. Reiki Master classes and other workshops were also held there. After she retired the new owner(s) expanded in a different direction and started offering pop-up yoga all over town including Lake Arlington, the AT&T Stadium (on the field), the Sanford Inn, Knapp Heritage Park, and even more places. One of my most favorite pop-up yoga classes was a Saturday morning one held at the Levitt Pavilion after Covid restrictions were lifted and the field was taped off so that participants were appropriately and safely social distanced; it developed into such a beautiful day as the sun rose higher that morning. Today I have migrated to the ACTIV recreational center for which I remain grateful for staff, the facilities, class peers, and instructors. I appreciate seeing the sunrises and sunsets through the large windows in the ACTIV Studio during the changing seasons. We sometimes get bonus viewings of a few of the planets before the sun comes up. I also am very appreciative of the pop-up classes held at the Lake Arlington Native Plant and Pollinator Garden through the City of Arlington https://www.arlingtontx.gov/Community-Calendar/Water-Utilities-Events/Lake-Arlington-Volunteer-Events/Lake-Arlington-Garden-Activity-Day and recommend for everyone to visit especially during the spring to view the acres of wildflowers (especially the Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrushes) in addition to the five demo garden plots; yoga is a stellar plus in the garden - https://texanbynature.org/projects/lake-arlington-native-plant-and-pollinator-garden/ Here is a shout-out thank you to yogis Marinda, Sarah, Shelley, Dharma Mittra, David, Marissa, Martha, Jennifer, Diamond, Jessica, and Stephanie from Floreen.