Get to Know Our Very Own Joyce Eickmeyer Owens
Joyce has taught at Yoga Among Friends since we opened our doors in 1998. She received her teacher training from White Lotus Foundation.
Her own "slow flow" style of yoga is gentle yet powerful. As an instructor and musician, she brings a harmonious flow of body, mind, and spirit to her classes. Joyce says, "When we value our bodies as rare musical instruments, we create our own music."
Here are some fun facts about Joyce Owens in her own words:
If you could pick one song to play every time you entered a room it would be..."Any selection from the CD 'The Best of Wah.' "
In a perfect world, we would communicate via..."Person to person so we could see each other with our eyes, listen to voice inflection with our ears and reach out and give a hug if needed."
My favorite animal is..."I love all animals but my personality is more aligned with a lazy, chubby, laid back, furry-purry cat."
Favorite Pigout food..."Ice cream."
Last show I binge-watched..."I've never binge-watched anything, but I love British comedy and drama series, and I could probably binge-watch all the Poldark series.
A good book I'm reading.." 'Hearing Beethoven' by Robin Wallace."
Favorite place..."On the mat or on a piano bench."
When I'm not on a yoga mat, I'm..."Reading non-fiction, researching history and genealogy, piano, knitting and trying to find time to get my oil paints out once again."
My life mission is to..."encourage, honor, and uplift other people's talents and gifts through yoga."
The most important thing yoga has taught me..."At this point in my life, yoga has taught me to honor the aging process instead of giving in to the concept of getting "old." Aging is a natural progression of life and I want to be as strong, flexible, and open as I can be when along the way."
A pose I struggle with..."I can't say I struggle with a certain pose because each pose is new to me each time I do it no matter how long I've been doing it. Maybe I was late to class and I'm unable to throw the stress of that off. Maybe my sciatica is flaring up, but then maybe that certain pose I had been struggling with was spot-on and I said, "Wow!" out loud in class. Energy is different all the time.
A pose I love and why..."Plain ol' down dog. Love that pose and I don't know why."
My most inspiring yoga-related experience(s) has been..."yoga retreats at Good Hope in Jamaica."
The biggest reason I teach yoga is..."It took me a long time to find my voice in life. When an incredible musician friend and mentor passed away, I came to realize how many gifts of learning and knowledge of music he gave to me. At the same time, along came Laura Jane with her brilliance and yoga and opened a door for me that changed my life. With her encouragement, I found myself in California at White Lotus becoming a yoga teacher. I could no longer hold on to or keep inside the gifts I had received. I had to pass them on as best I could so they would live and give outside of me. I found my voice - and became a teacher."
I want my yoga students to...."Enjoy yoga. Enjoy what you can do. Enjoy the poses that feel good. Enjoy the poses you don't like. In music, it's practice, practice, practice. Same with yoga. Enjoy the practice - it's the practice that sustains us.
Find Joyce Owens on the drop-in schedule on Mondays at 10 am for Vinyasa Flow, L1. And on Fridays at 11:30 am for Yoga for Healthy Living. All levels are welcome.
