01/29/2025
Exciting News About the Future of Wild Lotus Yoga
Message from Seán:
Dear Wild Lotus Family,
I’m thrilled to share some exciting news with y'all: after 22 years, I’m passing the torch of ownership and stewardship of Wild Lotus Yoga to my friend and long-time Wild Lotus teacher, Anne Compton (AC) Lambeth. Anne Compton is an incredible person and a deeply inspiring teacher. She was part of our very first Soul School Teacher Training class in 2008 and has since been an integral part of our Wild Lotus family. I deeply respect her unwavering commitment to the studio, her dedication to yoga, and her leadership of our new Living Yoga Teacher Training Program.
With my transition to Asheville to join the AyurPrana leadership team and become the director of the Asheville Yoga Center, it’s clear that the studio needs a steward who can be present with it every day in a way that is not possible for me to manage from afar. Anne Compton is the perfect person for this role. Her passion for nurturing the heart-centered culture we’ve built over the last 22 years will ensure Wild Lotus Yoga continues to thrive and evolve. I can’t express enough how comforting it is to know the studio will be in such capable, trusted hands.
This isn’t a goodbye for me, but a shift in my role. I’ll continue to stay connected as a visiting teacher and a lifelong friend of the studio. I've poured my heart and soul into the studio over these many years. Knowing that I can still return and be a part of this community means the world to me, and it softens the tinge of grief I feel with the transition to this new chapter. I look forward to returning in March to teach the BHAKTImmersion and sub class!
For the better part of my adult life, Wild Lotus Yoga has been a sacred space and a profound gift. I am endlessly grateful for all of the inspiring students, teachers, admin staff, and teacher trainees who’ve graced the studio over the years. You’ve made this journey incredibly meaningful, and I cherish our time together.
A special thank you to my wife, Farah; my parents, Bruce and Mary; our studio managers, Nicole and Julia; our interim director, Leo; my friend and Soul School co-trainer, Mitchel Bleier; and most importantly, all of our current teachers for their devotion, inspiration, and patience: Andra, Asha, Beverly, Celeste, Christine, Dena, Emily, Karen, Kerrie, Kina, Javi, Leo, Lindsey, Lori, Lauren Best, Lauren Sloan, Rebecca, Sara, Vera, and Zach. I'm so grateful for y'all. You hold a very special place in my heart.
Lastly, I want to extend my deepest gratitude to Anne Compton for following her heart and stepping into this new role. Please join me in giving her a warm welcome as she takes the reins of Wild Lotus Yoga.
Please read Anne Compton's personal greeting below.
With love and gratitude,
Seán
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Hello, dear Wild Lotus Family!
The first time I stepped foot into Wild Lotus Yoga almost twenty years ago, I felt I had come home. It’s a place that I found connection—with myself, with my community, and with a larger purpose. The studio became my lighthouse, guiding me through all kinds of challenges, as well as my sanctuary, always bringing me peace, healing, and community.
I know many of you feel this way, too. After 22 years, Wild Lotus is a New Orleans institution. This is of course because of its vibrant community of students, practitioners, and trainees, its consistently stellar teachers, and its integral offerings of yoga in all its forms, but it all began and has been cultivated by the visionary and inspiring teaching of Seán Johnson.
When Seán told me he was moving to Asheville, honestly? I was devastated. I thought the one thing I had counted on—my beloved studio and teacher—was finally falling apart. But one of the many things Seán taught me is that Life is bigger than I think. That what I see as disintegration is sometimes, in fact, revelation, illuminating the real foundation that has been supporting me all along.
You often hear people who have spiritual teachers talking about their touch of grace—the touch that shifts something radically for them. It’s that moment when your teacher raises the bar, or pulls the rug out, and you think you might fall, but instead you find yourself flying.
I never thought I’d own a yoga studio; and I still don’t think I would own just any yoga studio. But I feel deep in my heart that this is my calling to take up the torch, to keep the light shining and the hearth warm, so that Wild Lotus Yoga continues to be a place where students of yoga gather for connection, inspiration, healing, and peace.
I am so honored and thrilled to step into this role and steward Wild Lotus Yoga onward. I look forward to this next chapter with you all. Please know that what you love about Wild Lotus Yoga will not only remain but grow stronger. Also, I am always open to hearing how we can strengthen our commitment to our community and to offering the heart-centered and down-to-earth spiritual experience of yoga in New Orleans.
With love & excitement,
Anne Compton
New Orleans' Home For Heart-Centered Yoga & Down-To-Earth Spirituality We offer a variety of classes for all levels of experience.
