Meet Monisha Knight of Hot Yoga West Reading

West Reading Peeps

Just An Earth Guide...

Meet Monisha Knight of Hot Yoga West Reading

By Denise Drobnick

For Monisha Knight, becoming the owner of Hot Yoga West Reading, 120 S 3rd Ave, on November 15, 2021 was the realization of an intention set the year before – during a pandemic, no less – and the culmination of a lifetime journey. But it was just the beginning for this business owner, mother, budding community activist, nurse, yogi, and “earth guide.” Let’s get to know her better…

Born in Red Bank, NJ, Monisha Jefferson was the eldest of 7 children. The family moved around quite a bit, with a mother who struggled with drug addiction and at times found herself incarcerated. Monisha was pulled in and out of schools so frequently, that some of them didn’t want to take her back. Although Monisha said that like most kids, she just wanted her mom no matter what, there was instability and uncertainty in her everyday life. Around age 7 or 8, she remembers seeing people hurting other people on the news and asking, “God, why am I here?” She felt a sense of not belonging anywhere, and felt confused when people told her she resembled her mother. Around this same time, Monisha was molested by her mother’s boyfriend, and she and her younger sister, Aja, were sent to live with their great grandmother in Middletown, NJ.

Great grandma Mary Louise was a nurse and a fiercely independent woman who taught the girls that they needed to be self-reliant and not count on others to take care of them. She ran her home like a boarding house, often taking in other senior citizens in need of care. There were animals – goats, lambs, geese, rabbits and dogs – and Monisha developed a love of the outdoors and nature. There were also rules, such as if you missed church on Sunday, you lost your privileges for the week. There was stability here, and Monisha took in all the lessons her great

grandmother offered – maybe to a fault. But as her great grandmother got older, it was difficult for her to take care of 2 young girls. When she was 76, and Monisha and her sister were 12 and 11 respectively, Monisha would call her 26-year-old Aunt Delissa in Texas crying. One day, Aunt Delissa showed up to take the girls to live in New York City, and although they lived in Manhattan at first, Monisha said eventually she lived in “all the boroughs.” The girls attended Catholic school, and Monisha graduated from Bishop Loughlin High School in Brooklyn and was accepted to NYU as a secondary English education major. At 18 she married her high school sweetheart, Jamel Knight, and by 19 they had their first child, Jacquel. He was a preemie born at 26 weeks, and although Monisha remained at NYU for 1 ½ years, it was a challenge for a young mother of a child with developmental delays. She decided to transfer to a less rigorous program at the College of New Rochelle, where she majored in childhood education and psychology. When Jacquel was one, his sister, Tien, was born.

As a mother, Monisha was consumed with giving the appearance of “raising her kids right,” but at home her style was open and free. Her studies in child psychology played a role, as she tried concepts like “coming down to a child’s level” – complete with furniture at ground level – and allowing her children to finger paint on the walls to spur creativity (and perhaps not coincidentally, Tien, now 25, is an artist living in California).

By the time Jacquel was 5, Monisha was working for a British-based investment bank in NYC. While their friends were sending their children to expensive private schools, Catholic school was more within budget for Monisha and Jamel. When they realized the school was unable to provide the services Jacquel needed, they placed him in public school and soon packed up and moved to Allentown, PA for better public schools. While there, two more children came along – daughter, Daia, in 2003, and son, Calel, in 2005. Once the family had

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grown to four children, they wanted to get out of the city so moved again – this time to Macungie. Monisha’s thoughts turned back to career – what did she really want to be? She had thought she would be so many things…a philanthropist, a teacher, an investment banker, a lawyer even…but suddenly she realized she was meant to become a nurse, just like her great grandmother. She remembers a conversation with her husband at this time in which he remarked whatever she decided to do, she needed to finish it this time! The comment re-ignited her belief that she needed to be self-sufficient and not dependent on anybody, especially a man. She was accepted to the Reading Hospital School of Nursing, a program that offered training and clinicals all in one location and on-site daycare. By 2010 the family moved to Sinking Spring and Monisha graduated in 2012. Finally – as a nurse – she felt completely like herself. Soon she would make a discovery that would further change her path: hot yoga. Continued on next page

West Reading Peeps

While working at Phoebe Berks in 2013, she met Dr. Ann Marie Lago who told her about hot yoga and invited her to a class. Monisha had to exit the hot room TWICE and left the studio feeling devastated. On top of that, Jamel said that meant her mind was weak. Well, that was it; she went back and completed a 30-day challenge (meaning a 90-minute class every day for 30 days in a row) and lost 17 pounds. She loved the heat and continued to practice, wanting to learn more. She decided to take yoga teacher training with the late Pam Guido, beloved teacher at the former Shri Yoga and Wellness Center, and an evolution began. Even after the 200-hour training, her old insecurities crept in and she found herself feeling somehow “unequal.” Her answer was to further her training – once traveling with previous HYWR owner, the late Joel Pier, to a yoga retreat in Argentina and also attending yoga trapeze training in Barcelona – all in an effort to reset, heal spiritually, develop loving awareness, and discover her divine self. Yoga was like fresh air on a foggy mirror, allowing Monisha to really see herself.

By mid-2020, Monisha found herself on Penn Avenue buying two Tibetan prints from a street vendor and setting a vague intention that one day they would occupy her future yoga studio. At this point she had been teaching for Joel, and he shared that he would like to retire soon. They made a “soul agreement” in October 2020 that she would take over when it was time. Now, as the new owner of HYWR, her primary goal is to let the community know the studio is not going away! She plans to cultivate joy, inspire a team of instructors who love to teach, and provide more community-inclusive events. Half price classes are back, allowing people to easily give hot yoga a try. She would like to eventually create a non-profit to bring yoga, and all its mental health benefits, to those who may not have access to a traditional studio.

Monisha has come a long way on her journey, with the help of many strong mother figures along the way. She has made peace with her own mother (who is now sober and a social worker), her now ex-husband (with whom she is great friends), and even her father (whom she only met in 4th grade but is now happily in her life as grandfather to her children). She has “unlearned” and “unpacked” much to let people in and accept help when needed; we are a community after all. She doesn’t want to be emulated, though; she is just an earth guide who believes things will work out. With an abundance of love, there is no end… Namaste