Meet Jacquie “Sunny” Barbee
I am a yoga practitioner in an aging, plus sized, chronically ill body that hopes to make yoga more accessible in as many ways possible to every body. I try to help practitioners connect, love and be grateful for the body that shows up for them everyday in whatever capacity it is in at that moment.
I appreciate that this YTT is more accessible than many trainings I’ve seen, even the one I attended myself. It’s rare to see the diversity in the faculty come together like this and offering such variety of experiences and knowledge.
For me, yoga is service to the whole community. It is action beyond the poses. It is the connection with myself and how that is carried out into the world. Yoga is a vehicle towards peace, balance, and healing for all.
Before, it was the poses and breath work and helping me to cope with my illness both mental and physical. Now, along with that, it is how can I make a difference in the world with action rooted in yogic principles.
The world needs so much healing, maybe now more than ever.
I would still be in a corporate, capitalistic driven career that was making me more sick and stressed. Before my practice, I was always in pain and anxious and not living my best life because when I wasn’t working, I was in bed struggling.
As a teacher practicing in a plus sized body, I wasn’t sure that students would take me seriously or even want to practice with me. This made me doubt myself at times. I learned that putting your leg behind your head or having the perfect handstand wasn’t necessary to make an impact or a good teacher. I teach from my heart and my personal experience and that is enough.
We need to pause, rest and work on healing our own traumas. This will help the collective community to do the same and see each other as a whole. We must be standing up and speaking out against all the “isms” and injustice happening around us rather than sit passively by thinking “this doesn’t affect me” because we are all connected.