Clayton Horton Mysore workshops at Yoga Manila

It was intimidating to say the least. Towering over 6 feet, Clayton Horton himself let me into the Yoga Manila Makati shala. The director of the San Francisco-based Greenpath Yoga glanced at the clock, silently chiding me for my tardiness and seemed to worry about where to put me in the crowded studio of 17 practitioners.
Maritoni Tordesillas graciously made space for me at the far end of the room. There were four other YM instructors attending Clayton’s Mysore workshop: Hoze Arando, Peachie Kilayco, Cherry Du and Kitty Arambulo. I arrived only 30 minutes late so it made me panic to see a number of people already dropping back. In my trepidation, I somehow erased the primary series from memory. I must have skipped 10 poses and stopped at Navasana. Maritoni had to remind me every so often what asana came next which made me feel like a major pain for interrupting her practise.

Upside: getting that warm, fuzzy feeling from practising beside my teachers; finding inspiration from watching them doing 2nd series poses like Dwi Pada Sirsasana and Pincha Mayurasana; seeing my friend Allen Enrique grasp her shins for 5 breaths in Urdhva Dhanurasana (woo-hoo!); and best of all--Clayton Horton’s gentle and painless adjustments especially for my enemy poses Marichyasana D and Supta Kurmasana.

Downside: workshops are usually packed and run for a limited period, so try to learn as much as you can as not everyone may get adjustments. Most importantly, DON'T BE LATE.