:: November/December 2005 Volume 4/Number 8

Teacher Profile:
Lynn Kelley-Piper

By FELICIA M. TOMASKO

A phone call delivered Lynn Kelley-Piper to the Inland Empire, landing her in Riverside. Prior to returning to her birthplace of Southern California, since 1966 Piper had been living, working and teaching yoga in Canada. Even before the phone rang, Piper was ready to make a change; she had told her children she was thinking of moving south. But when the phone rang, her bags were packed and she was on her way to spend a year living and traveling in Europe. Instead, Piper flew south to take care of her mother, who was about to have heart surgery.

This was not the first time a family health crisis instigated a major change in Piper’s life. As a teenager living in Redondo Beach, a severe car accident caused a number of injuries. Rather than surgeons, her parents sought out yoga masters to provide therapeutic interventions. Thus at the age of 14, Piper began yoga. Her practice initially consisted of working only with the breath and then progressed as her body healed.

Through this experience, Piper became dedicated to yoga, deepening her practice by repeatedly traveling to India to study with Krishnamacharya, and later with B.K.S. Iyengar. She practiced with women yoga masters Indra Devi in Mexico and Vanda Scarvelli in Toronto. Over the years, she continued her studies with a number of other venerable teachers around the world, including Judith Lasater and Donna Farhi. She began teaching yoga at the age of 22—right after getting married and moving to Alberta, Canada, where she taught farmers, ranchers and oilmen. “I was surprised to find enough people to teach.” But teach, she did, inspired by the personal experiences that made her a believer in the health benefits of yoga—benefits she strives to communicate to her students daily.

Emphasis on the healing power of the breath is a central theme in Piper’s teaching and practices, stemming from her first-hand knowledge of it effectiveness. “It healed me,” she insists. “Breath seems to people to be so evasive. ‘I breathe,’ people say. But how well do they breathe? Every single inhale, every single exhale has the power to heal the body, and to act in disease prevention.”

As a result, Piper focuses on the breath in some of the first classes her students attend. She is able to do this, as well as work with students in a progressive fashion, because she does not teach drop-in classes. All of Piper’s classes are held at Yoga Within, the school she founded in Riverside. Students sign up for 10-15 week sessions, depending on the level of the class. This fall, she has 110 students enrolled in her regular courses. Before accepting students into the program, she requires them to complete an interview process. She clarifies that this is not because she is elitist; rather, her unique class organization requires that students who decide to make the commitment are a good fit for the classes and for each other. “I want people to have a positive, good experience.”

The tightly-knit groups find a home at Yoga Within, which is part of Piper’s intention. “When a student comes in to the school, there are no surprises; it is like going home; they already know what to expect.” Piper’s student Jo Simpson comments that groups develop a sense of community. She began taking classes at Yoga Within three years ago and even after moving from the Inland Empire to Dana Point, continues to commute to Riverside for this unique environment.

Piper’s classes have a therapeutic emphasis on helping students learn to use their bodies safely. She says that the majority of her students come in with conditions or situations in their lives that limit them in some way, necessitating adaptations. Piper is familiar with adapting yoga, not only from her early experiences, but also as a result of her more recent struggles with fibromyalgia and depression.

Even yoga teachers are not immune to the effects of stress. Nine years ago, living in Vancouver, Piper described a period of time where her stress load became overwhelming. She owned a specialty food company, a catering company, and a bed and breakfast—all the while continuing to teach yoga. “I slept around two hours a night,” she said. At the time, her marriage and personal life was also piling on the stress. It reached the breaking point when she was catering her son’s wedding, hosting family and still working. After family left and the wedding was over, her body had enough and fibromyalgia put her to bed for a year. One component of health, Piper said is “how deeply you are in tune with the body; how deeply you listen.I confess I hadn’t been listening.”

It was through learning a number of lessons, such as listening, contemplating and becoming quiet, learning to say no, setting limits and letting her friends care for her that she was able to recover. And she has changed her life as a result. “Now I plan my life around staying well.” Her challenges also provide some reflection “I wouldn’t be the teacher I am today if it weren’t for all that.”
Piper’s commitment to her health is a model for her students. Simpson appreciates the insights Piper is able to impart as a result of the challenges and that she has been candid in sharing them. Teaching for nearly 40 years now, she mused on her life as a teacher. “I used to wonder why yoga teachers didn’t retire. Now I understand. It will be very hard to retire.” Piper paused, thoughtfully. “It won’t happen.”

 

Lynn Kelley-Piper can be reached at her school, Yoga Within: (951) 787-6210; www.healthyyoga.net

 

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