This week I had a blast from the past, when a Pilates teacher who I mentored 16 years ago got back in touch. It was lovely to hear from her and to hear how she has been getting on with her Pilates teaching. It was also lovely to recall how she came to get in touch with me in the first place.

 

She had been doing her Pilates teacher training with the Pilates Institute in London (which is where I originally trained). I had done some assessing for them and they had given her my name as someone to contact as a mentor. 

 

Basically, she has made a lovely career out of her Pilates teaching: she lived abroad for a few years and taught over there and now she has moved back into the country and looking at starting up again now she is settled. 

 

It was quite amazing actually, because at the time I was mentoring her, I was also helping to care for my Dad at home as he was dying from cancer, so the memories were mixed as it brought back all the sadness of that time. But it also reminded me of the kindness of people who will, in times of trouble, step up and offer support and help in many different ways.

 

I remember it so vividly, because she hadn’t actually done any full class teaching but she was attending my classes as a way of building up her confidence and understanding, before she went for her final teaching assessment. I knew from the work I had done with her that she was going to make an excellent Pilates teacher, and I remember that one morning as I turned up to teach I was feeling so totally drained and sad about my Dad that I suddenly felt I couldn’t face my groups — and, bless her, she said she would do it for me. She said she would do it as a way of thanking me for all the support I had given her. I was overwhelmed and massively grateful.

 

It was absolutely what I needed at that time, so it was lovely that she got back in touch with me and we could chat and laugh about her experiences since qualifying and all that she has achieved. She did say that on the morning when she stepped out of her comfort zone and taught the two classes that she felt physically sick, but knew that she could do it — best of all, she added that doing it was the turning point for her teaching.

 

It's fantastic when people that you may not have seen for years get back in touch and you start to share memories and reminisce how life has been treating you and all that has happened. It's also a great opportunity to take stock and see the balance of how life has been. For me, it's been a mix of sadness, loss, but also lots of joy and happiness as it is for most people, so I can’t complain really. 

 

We are always hearing that we shouldn’t look back, but live now and think of the future, but sometimes looking back and remembering events and people who have crossed your path can give perspective and a realisation of what you have accomplished and all that you have learnt to get you to this point today.