A Mind & Body Restored: HPSA Yoga (Bronze, 2 Points)

On September 22, 2025, I attended the Restorative Yoga event hosted by the Spelman College Honors Program. This event was held in the afternoon and followed a hectic academic day. Our session was led by Spelman alumna Aliya Brooks and included both individual and partner stretching. As I engaged with the activity, I thought deeply about the Habit of Mind Curated Inwardness and later reflected extensively on Kevin Quashie’s insights surrounding quiet. Relating to the former, as I stretched, I realized that yoga could serve as a way for me to intentionally carve out time for myself–particularly amidst my busy collegiate schedule. Simultaneously, I also realized that time spent moving has always been my time for curated inwardness. As a dancer since age two, I have spent an unquantifiable number of hours being “inward,” though then I could not articulate what that time represented. In my FYE class, we established that the internal world is a place, and during our class, I felt as if I had returned and nestled comfortably into that place. Relating to Quashie, I identified that yoga exemplifies the difference between silence and quiet. While silence is the absence of sound and can often feel “cold,” quiet–which yoga is–restores and is defined by its ability to nurture one’s internal world. If hosted again, I would definitely attend, and during this semester, I intend to seek out other movement activities. 

-Sydney Curry