Kquvien came. She saw us. She inspired us.
When I took class with her a few years ago in Atlanta, I found Kquvien Deweese to be an inspiring and refreshing voice in Iyengar Yoga. And of course I wanted to share that with my Memphis peeps!
It’s risky to sign up for a yoga workshop. You might not even know the teacher, but you your friend tells you she/he is awesome or inspiring. So you commit to go.
There’s trust involved. You set aside hours of your precious weekend to focus on you and your yoga. To learn something new about yourself or to challenge yourself physically.
I appreciate all who participated in the weekend with Kquvien. You showed up and brought with you your whole selves – with an open mind and a willingness to see and be seen.
And if you didn’t make it this time, no worries. Kquvien will be back next year!
Plus, your friends who attended present here some highlights from their experience.
Namaste, Everybody! Looking forward to seeing you all in class! 
“I appreciated Kquvien’s teaching because she started with the toes, moved to the feet, worked on the ankles and on up until we had awakened every bone, muscle and joint in our bodies. She helped us build on our understanding of the asanas. It begins with the foundation” – Elaine
“Kquvien exuded such confidence in our ability to do what she asked that it enabled me to start a pose with more confidence in myself to execute her instructions. I loved the workshop. Kquvien is an excellent teacher.”
– Kathy
“When leaving the studio she didn’t just say goodbye. She said something like…’Good luck out there in the real world.’ Not sure that was it verbatim, but she said it on Saturday and again on Sunday. It reminded me that yoga is not just about what you do in the studio or on your mat, but how you apply the knowledge in the real world.”
– Laura
“Learning the difference between the pain of evolution and the pain of destruction. In life, in yoga, in relationships, in work…Knowing that growing muscle in any way takes pains….but it’s also important to know when the pains you’re feeling aren’t growing muscle so smart.”
– Courtney
“I think Q was thoughtful, precise, humorous and her knowledge of sutras was inspiring. I liked the way she commandeered the class keeping everybody engaged. There were a couple of students who had never done yoga before and she managed to keep them engaged while focusing on the teaching. She is a good teacher. I would like to take her workshop again.”
– Shailendra
“I found Kquvien’s translation of one of the yoga sutras particularly meaningful. The scholarly translation: ‘Long, uninterrupted, alert practice is the firm foundation for restraining the fluctuations of the mind.’ Kquvien’s translation: ‘This sh*t takes time!‘”
– Leah
“Very often, the yoga sessions are very serious business and trying to get the poses right is challenging! I can still hear Kquvien say: ‘And now smile!‘ I believe this is the first time I have heard this instruction and it certainly contributed to the 2:30 minutes flying by!”
– Elisabeth
“I had been so proud of my knee lift – it was the first, maybe only, foundational move I had mastered completely. Or so I believed until I met Kquvien. I now know that I hyper-extend, that my lift came from pushing back not pulling up. I spent the rest of the workshop in deep communal thought with my knees, trying to engage with them from a new position – that level of targeted body awareness is a wonderful feeling!”
– Diane
“I loved her concept about the pain of evolution vs the pain of destruction. And how she incorporates the sutras into the asana practice. Also, it struck me when she said to stick with the yamas and niyamas and not get greedy to do the pose. Also, her explanation of samadhi – absorption”
– Theresa
“Prior to the workshop with Kquvien, I have felt SUPER limited with vrksasana – and I did have the “oh no” reaction when she said this was the next pose we would be doing. The way she broke it down little by little, reinforcing the instructions with each progression- facilitated my cognitive and physical understanding of this pose and I was really pleased with my success in getting into and sustaining the pose! YAY!!!”
– Susanne
“Kquvien, I thought it was so interesting that you worked on a small number of poses in order to perfect each pose. You managed to work with each student, even in a large class I liked your sense of humor, and was impressed with your memory for names. I hope you will return to Memphis.”
– Gerri
“I’ve been fortunate to study with Kquvien for several years, but one thing I learned was about the use of breath in asana. In particular, the use of an ujjayii breath to lift the foot higher into the perineum in vrkasana. Kquvien also used a metaphor of water under a rocky overhang to describe the breath going under the ribs in pranayama – I found that very illuminating.”
– Bob