You may know her from the mat, but there's so much more to discover.
Every teacher has a story, and Raeann's journey with yoga is one worth getting to know. Here's a great way to learn a little more about what has shaped her practice and what inspires her as a teacher. Read on to learn more about her heart, intention, and story she brings to the Temple community.
What first brought you to yoga, and what made you fall in love with it?
I decided to try a yoga class during my junior year of high school (2017). At the time, I was carrying some pretty heavy weight on my shoulders. My baby brother, Caleb was diagnosed with Stage 4 Neuroblastoma and passed away within a few months of his diagnosis.
The yoga class was the first time I was able to truly set down what I had been carrying: the grief of his death, trying to keep it together for my parents, and the overwhelming pressure of my future. Feeling lost in what I wanted to do, and like I had to figure it all out on my own. It was crippling.
I had always heard sayings like, “Take a deep breath” and “Tomorrow is a new day,” but I never truly understood them until I went to yoga. For the first time, I experienced what it felt like to be held by the earth instead of being the one who had to hold everything together for everyone else. It was the first time I had felt safe in a long time.
Yoga taught me that even when everything around me felt overwhelming, I could set it down and simply be. It wasn’t something I had to carry all of the time.
Over the last three years, what has made me fall in love with yoga most is the community. I grew up feeling lonely and often had to face my struggles on my own.
Yoga has taught me to soften, to trust, and to lean on the people around me.
It wasn’t until I became a part of Temple Yoga that I truly felt like I had found a home. After spending so much of my life feeling like I had to carry everything alone, finding a community where I could be supported, held, and simply be myself changed everything.
What does yoga mean to you beyond the physical practice?
Beyond the physical practice, yoga means union. I went to a reggae concert recently, the artist made every single person in the audience feel seen. She had us hug our neighbors, even if they were strangers, and encouraged us to sing and dance together as one.
It didn’t matter where anyone came from, what they had done, or who they were. What mattered was that we were together, enjoying the same music under the same stars.
Mel recently sent out a newsletter that said, “yoga isn’t something we do; it is something we are.” In that moment, surrounded by strangers who no longer felt like strangers, I understood what she meant. Yoga is union. It is connection. It is the moments when we allow ourselves to come together, to see one another, and to simply be - exactly as we are.
What has yoga taught you about yourself?
I was taking a class with Pradeep. We were about an hour in when the practice started to get really hard. Pradeep noticed that the class was struggling, and he said, “Yes, the postures are hard. But life is hard.”
When he said that, the pose somehow became easier. My mindset shifted from, “Make it stop, make it stop,” to surrender. In that moment, I realized that the postures can reveal so much about how we deal with life. When things get hard, do we resist? Or do we learn to move with the ebbs and flows, trusting that the difficult moments will pass?
Just as the difficult postures eventually passed, so did the challenge in that moment. Pradeep eventually had us spend several breaths lying on our bellies, with our heartbeats against the earth.
Yoga has taught me about the kind of person I am, both on and off the mat. It has given me values to live by: kindness toward all living beings, including myself; mindfulness around overconsumption; learning not to make someone else’s story about me; and releasing judgment of others, just to name a few.
Asana helps bring awareness to the way we show up in the world. And in that awareness, we are given a choice: to redirect ourselves or to stay the same.
What keeps you coming back to the mat?
I do it for my baby brother, Caleb. I do it for my grandfathers, who helped raise me. I do it for my family, my pets, and my dear friends.
I do it because of the love we share. I know I am more present, grounded, and connected to myself when I am devoted to my practice, and that version of me carries into my relationships. The way I show up for myself affects the way I show up for the people I love, and that impact extends beyond me in ways I may never fully see.
When I take responsibility for my own actions and the way I move through the world, I create space for others to do the same.
I went to a Karaoke Bar where no one was singing. I picked up the mic and sang “Wanted Dead or Alive” by Bon Jovi from my whole heart. It wasn’t beautiful, but it was true to me. After I had gone up, the crowd went wild. So many people signed up to go next. People with the most incredible voices were singing from their heart. Other people felt like they could express themselves because they watched me make a complete fool of myself, and own it. Yoga has made me not afraid to take a first step.
If someone has never taken your class before, what would you want them to know before they walk through the door?
You are welcome exactly as you are. There is no pressure to perform or to be a certain way.
My own postures are not “picture-perfect”, and they don’t need to be. There is no need to compare yourself to me or anyone else. I hope I can simply be an example that it is okay not to get everything right on the mat instantly. Asana is a beautiful practice that unfolds over time, and before you know it, you surprise yourself simply by continuing to show up.
I want my space to be the yoga studio version of the reggae concert I went to: a space with room for everyone to be seen, where strangers can come together as one, and where you can lean on your community, for the connection and laughter we all crave.
What would you say to the person who has been thinking about trying your class but hasn’t made it in yet?
Our paths will cross when they are meant to. No pressure. My greatest teachers have been my students through and through. I am looking forward to learning from you.
Fun Facts about Rae!
I love Summiting Mountains, Paddle Boarding, Skydiving & Golfing. When I’m not on my mat, I’m probably out in nature or with my puppy Snoopy and kitty Mochi. I also would not be where I am today without the love of my life, Arturo.
