"I used to do the Blackberry prayer under the desk," laughs yoga instructor Kevan Gale, referring to the covert flurry of fingertips used to juggle competing conversations, priorities, and stressful travel schedules during the 12 years he spent in the corporate world with a high-
profile company. Today, the only praying he does is with Mala beads, having traded the high-pressure corporate life to become a full-
time yoga instructor. He first discovered yoga during a leadership-school outing in college, practicing meditation during a solitary five-day wilderness retreat. A competitive swimmer and cyclist, he gravitated toward the conscious use of breath, deepening his practice over the years. Beyond the physical benefits, Gale noticed himself growing more compassionate, patient, and focused -- putting down the Blackberry more often. Eventually, he didn't want to pick it up anymore. "The more I delved into yoga, the more I realized that [the corporate world] wasn't where I wanted to live my life," he says. "I felt I could do more to benefit people." So as an instructor, Gale spreads the practice of PranaVayu Yoga, an American-based, Buddhist-influenced style he studied with its founder, David Magone. In 2009, he opened Stil Studio in Dedham with co-founder Betty Riaz of the Stil clothing boutique, and though he knows not everyone will be inspired to radically swap professional life for a devout yogic path, he hopes to at least inspire us to slow down -- and take a deep breath. "We're so distracted by material wants, needs, and career that we forget the underlying goal is to experience happiness in life," he says. Come on, get happy.
