I would like to talk about an outdoor yoga gathering I attended about six months ago, right at the start of summer. It was held in a Victorian park on the edge of my home town, which is usually quite bustling during the day, but at half past five in the morning, it was utterly serene.
A local fitness instructor had organised it through a community noticeboard to mark the summer solstice. She invited anyone who fancied an early start, completely free of charge. To be honest, I am not really a morning person, but my flatmate persuaded me to tag along. When we arrived, there were about twenty people of all ages laying out their mats on the dewy grass beneath a canopy of mature oak trees.
The session began just as the sky was turning a soft shade of amber. The instructor led us through some gentle stretching and breathing exercises before moving into more demanding sequences like sun salutations. What made it particularly special was the sheer atmosphere of the surroundings. There was a light mist hovering over the boating pond nearby, and the only background noise was birdsong and the occasional rustle of leaves in the breeze.
By the time we finished with a brief meditation, I felt remarkably refreshed and clear-headed. I had expected to feel exhausted for the rest of the day, but it actually gave me a massive burst of energy. Doing exercise in the open air like that was completely different from being cooped up in a stuffy studio, and it really helped me shake off the stress of the working week.