All fun and games

Today I had the gift (and it truly was a gift) of teaching a class of about 20 high school students one of my colleagues works with. They have been studying yoga as a part of an in depth study and this week is an in-depth week of practicing.
What do you teach high school students that you'll only see ONE time? (and how do you do it without saying embarrassing things like pelvis, giggle giggle) It is daunting and totally easy at the same time.
It was a crazy day in my life. Wake up, meditate, take care of child, grocery shop, lunch, go get babysitter, put child in for nap, drive to the class like a madwoman and hunt all over for parking. I don't feel stressed all that often, so when I do, it is like a full on attack on my system. I did NOT get to practice and that's never the place I want to start from for teaching. When I arrived, I was tired, stressed, lacking a plan, and to be honest I just didn't really want to be there. I was not as enthused as I'd been when I'd taken on the task.
And then, my day totally shifted. What is the theme for high school students that will totally encapsulate Anusara without getting all airy-fairy or anatomical on them. I just went back to the heart of why I practice Anusara and what brought me to it in the first place. Life, is good. end of story. Life is a good thing, and we're here to enjoy it and have fun. So let's DO IT.
With that in place as our backdrop these kids ROCKED IT OUT! They were good kids and super willing to give everything a shot for me. We took the head of the armbones back in every pose and soon they were in half-handstand, half-vasisthasana, and even finally in Urdhva Dhanurasana with a partner. They did giggle from time to time, they are in high school still. But they also supported each other in tree pose with their eyes closed, and graciously demoed any pose I asked them to do. And they totally lifted my spirits.
To be honest, part of why I enjoy teaching is that I really enjoy sharing about Anusara. I love to spark people's interest and get excited about doing yoga. I love to see people try new things and to feel the energy coming back from them when I see that they're hooked in and invested. So even if I didn't get to roll out my mat today and the rest of the day felt overly full and cramped, for this hour I felt uplifted, energized, and happy. And, as John says, Happiness is one of the greatest reasons to do our practice. Score!