Dear Lil Omm,

Thank you for being so much more than a yoga studio. You are an incredible community of inspiring women, men and children. I had the opportunity and pleasure to experience your beauty from a variety of angles: as a student, as a teacher and finally, on the administrative side, as a manager. The view from each angle was breathtaking.

As a student, I saw beginner and seasoned yogis coming together as one curious, enthusiastic, supportive group. It never ceased to amaze me how comfortable I felt being myself within the confines of your pink walls, free to explore my body and my mind, led by a knowledgable and creative teacher. Before and after classes, I looked forward to the warm greetings and conversations that always took place among and between students and staff.

As a teacher, I saw the care and passion that went into the planning of every class, of every event, of every day from my fellow teachers, and most of all, from our incredible leader, Pleasance. I saw powerful, strong women from a variety of backgrounds, in a variety of situations, working together to manage and balance the struggles and the beauty of being a friend, a wife, a girlfriend, a mom and a daughter. I saw them transcend boundaries to provide support and love when support and love were needed by others and to ask for support and love when support and love were needed for themselves. I saw them selflessly check their own trials at the door in order to provide a nurturing home for the women, men, and children who looked to them for relief from life's stresses.

As a manager, I had the privilege of seeing how much hard work, love, and dedication went in to making Lil Omm the home it truly is. I saw how, with constant mindfulness, honesty, and humanity, a business could become a community, a family, a way of life that could be endlessly fulfilling.

Throughout my adult life, I've struggled with all of the competing images of what being a woman means in this society.  From the students, the teachers, and the amazing Pleasance, I've begun to see the various examples of womanhood in our society as beautiful and inspiring. I no longer feel the pressure (most of the time!) that there is one right way to be a "successful" woman, but instead see that there are a plethora of ways to incorporate womanhood and femininity into my life and that they can all be beautiful parts of a "right" me.

As Lil Omm prepares to move, just down the road, to a new space, and as I prepare for a new journey in my own professional life, I wanted you, the extraordinary Lil Omm community, to know how much you mean to me, how important you've been in my life, and how much I love you.  I am inspired and humbled by your beauty.

Thank you for everything you have given me so far. I look forward to all that is yet to come!


xoxo,
Pam