Collective Spotlight: Hannah Smith
Meet Hannah Smith, a yoga teacher and creative writing facilitator!
Why did you want to become a yoga teacher?
From 2016 to 2019 I was in grad school, obtaining my Master’s Degree in Women and Gender. My focus was on the power of live storytelling. Saying the hard part out loud. Building strength in connection, deepening empathy and combating gender-based violence. Those years of learning and community building were some of the best years of my life. Therefore, when I graduated in 2019, and a few months later when the world closed in 2020, I found myself without a project, without a job, and without a map. I was lost, which I learned is the perfect time to find yourself. I threw myself into my yoga practice. I fell in love with Vinyasa and Yin Yoga. I took daily Zoom classes and eventually went to outdoor yoga, finding new footing on unfamiliar and often uneven ground. With the world so completely, and so obviously out of my control, I found peace, surrender and the strength to carry on through my yoga practice. When my yoga mentors, Lauren Lewis and Heather Adris, decided to lead a 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training at our studio, they encouraged me to participate and pursue teaching. They saw the light yoga brought back to my life, as well as the pure enjoyment and fulfillment I experienced from yoga’s physical and emotional practices. Now, I have the privilege to help others move through their lives with the support of yoga.
What have you gained from this work?
As a Yoga Teacher, I get to hold space for community, help people build confidence, and hopefully make the practice of yoga enjoyable and accessible on and off the mat. Outside of yoga teaching, I’ve always worked in human services and the arts. I’ve dedicated my life to be in service of others and am committed to uplifting unheard voices. I think teaching yoga continues to fulfill those ethical principles.
What do you hope your students/clients feel after working with you?
Whether it is after a yoga class, or after a writing workshop, I hope all my participants feel tapped into their inherent self-worth and grounded in who they are. It is important to me to help folks feel deeply connected to themselves and to their community.
How does your work inform your activism or understanding of the world?
If you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of others.
If you don’t find your voice, others will speak for you.
If you don’t trust your inner wisdom, you will be led astray.
If you don’t learn to surrender, you’ll never be nourished.
If you don’t let go of the branch, you’ll never fly.
If you don’t try, you’ll never know.
What’s your favorite season of the year, and why?
I love the summer. I love spending hours in my garden under a warm sun and a large sun-hat. I love the long bright days. I love the constant invitation to go outside and stay outside.
What has made you smile recently that you feel the need to share?
My cat is named Janeway (after Captain Janeway in Star Trek). The other day, she was following me around, sitting on me, and generally not giving me any space. I told my husband about her behavior and he made the pun, “She’s a real Klingon.” (pronounced cling-on).
