Angel from Montgomery
One of my favorite songs is Angel from Montgomery. It's John Prine's song, but the version he did with Bonnie Raitt owns it. The first time I heard the song, my North Carolinian roommate in college was singing it to me in a soft Southern lilt, and I thought it was so lovely. Today, driving through Montgomery, Alabama, what do you think I played? There wasn't any way I fooling around with that...
My favorite line is: How the hell can a person/ Go to work in the morning/ and come home in the evening/ and have nothing to say. M'hm. You said it.
To go with the chorus of the song, this sequence is about flying. Flying along the road, and flying from Montgomery.
Angel from Montgomery
Make me an angel that flies from Montgomery,
Make me a poster of an old rodeo
Just give me one thing that I can hold on to,
To believe in this livin' is just a hard way to go
-John Prine
- Sukhasana (Easy Pose)
- Imagine the arms as wings, breathing the arms up, exhaling the arms down. Repeat 12x
- Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
- Garundasana (Eagle Pose)
- Virabhadrasana III (Warrior III Pose)
- Virabhadrasana I (Warrior I). Pulse back knee towards ground and straighten, warming up legs.
- Virabhadrasana II (Warrior II)
- Parsva Konasana (Side Angle Pose)
- Bind the arms around the front leg, bring the weight onto the back leg
- Lift front leg into Svarga Djivasana (Bird of Paradise Po
se). Feel light in this pose, able to fly - Trikonasana (Triangle Pose)
- Uttihita Tadasana (Five Pointed Star Pose)
- Repeat steps 3-12 on other side
- Tadasana
- Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose). Jog knees in place to warm up legs and hips. Hold for approximately 6 breaths
- Kapotasana (Pigeon Pose). Taking the hands to either side of the knee, move the torso like a wave over the knee to work the hips open
- Supta Kapotanasana (Reclined Pigeon Pose)
- Repeat steps 15-17
- Adho Mukha Svanasana
- Bakasana (Crow Pose)
- Parsva Bakasana (Side Crow Pose). You don't necessarily need to lift off, but try. Repeat on other side.
- Baddha Konasana (Cobbler's Pose). Butterfly knees. Pretend you're 8 years old if you have to.
- Tarasana (Star Pose)
- Twists in Star Pose, taking opposite arms to knee or thigh, other hand behind hips. Both sides
- Taking hands behind torso, gentle chest opener
- Taking hands to thighs, shins or feet, forward fold
- Move with breath between steps 25 and 26
- Lying onto back, any last leg stretches
- Savasana
