Tom Concannon

In conversation with a trusted teacher not too long ago, I was asked to describe my feelings about a deeply painful episode involving a loved one. After stumbling unsuccessfully through a few words, I found myself unable to say much. She suggested I use my body to show the feeling. Pulling from memory, I slumped over. Chin to chest, shoulders folded, ribcage locked down, lungs collapsed and eyes looking nowhere, I curled into a protective wrapping around my heart. This movement brought forth a familiar feeling, a kind of raw surrender and helplessness. She noticed. She then asked me to come out of that position, to stand up, spread my arms and open my chest. As I did, I found contact with another feeling—the free and unburdened spirit that is always living within me, always there.

This was truly the first time that I experienced my body as a key to knowledge. I felt my way to meaning, to what it is to be open, trusting, unharmed and unguarded. Living — for even one moment — in this state is to be poised for possibility and limitlessness. In that moment I discovered how movement, stillness and breath can offer a direct passage into wisdom already stored in my own body.

I have been practicing yoga in retreats and at home since 2014. My practice began without much awareness of yogic tradition and lineage. For me, retreat-based instruction has always led back to the same starting point - a personal investigation of inner experience.

In June 2022, my partner Ravi and I opened Willow, a Vermont retreat with a simple mission: to cultivate and sustain daily practices that bring true joy. By October I enrolled in a yoga teacher training and by May obtained a certification in Fluid Yoga.

My teaching style is practice focused. My classes explore how movement brings conscious awareness of the body, how attention to the moment cultivates wisdom, and how simple techniques in breathing can restore us to an unconditioned and pure state of being.

With an encouraging approach, I will guide you to look inward at an awakening that is already there.