AH, SATURDAY

Up early to continue working on class thoughts for today.  All week I've used "finding and accepting challenges" as a theme; so, will continue.   My personal story for all this is my search for a challenge now that my 'alphabetical birthday count-up' is over; as in, now what? 

If you've been reading, you know that I have a few now - challenges, that is.  First, I signed on to Amy's '30-Day Tigress Challenge'.  That is one hot commodity.  The night (Tuesday), I found it and added my name to the roster of participants, I was #18.  This morning, 248!  Looks like others were looking for challenges, as well.  Or, the thought of doing a press-up is just too enticing to be passed up.  Update on my progress:  Feet are staying well grounded on the blocks.  FYI, that's not what I am working towards -- I want lift-off!  Keep working, Leslie.

Challenge #2 - Assuring that my classes are welcoming, both from my standpoint and that of regular attendees.  So far, so good.  If I had classes of 20, 30, or more, this would be more of a challenge.  My classes are small enough that introductions are easy to handle.  I suppose that if (when) classes are that large, I - at the very least - must ask people to turn to the person beside them and (if they haven't met) introduce themselves, that could work.  I often sit on a mat with a stranger beside me and think "this is kind of uncomfortable, I should introduce myself".  I will if we partner.  Otherwise, I tend to just sit there -- what's that about?  Shyness?  Fear of rejection?  Snobbery?  Too early to think about that personal foible.  Just add it to the 'challenge' list.

Challenge #3 - I experienced Thursday night; that of teaching a very diverse group of students, both in skillset, physical conditioning and personality.  That will be an ongoing challenge and one without a set of guidelines to follow.  Each group I encounter will be diverse.  Maybe not as diverse as the class I described, but everyone comes with their own stuff.  Then mix in mine, and voila!  My challenge in all this will be to be accepting, stay fluid, stand firm, be compassionate, be enthusiastic without going overboard, encourage where appropriate.  All this, while I keep my sometimes 'flip' or unthinking comments to myself.  (Is this another challenge lurking on the outskirts?)

Well, must get on with planning for this morning.  One thing about teaching Anusara® yoga that I doubt many students see or realize, is that it isn't "canned" -- there isn't a script I've been given to use when teaching a particular group of students.  Each class is individual, like us; each class revolves around a theme or quality that our students ought to be able to relate to.  And - I love this part - each class will provide (hopefully) a "Wow" or "Ah-Ha" moment for students.  Even if it's something as simple as feeling their pelvis tilt during janu sirsasana -- granted that sounds like a pretty boring 'wow' moment, but I loved it when I had that first experience of feeling my pelvis tilt; and every time it happens, I'm lovin' it. 

Caveat:  I'm not saying that other styles of yoga are "canned"; I hope to convey that there is work that goes into planning classes.  Different styles do different work. 

Have a great weekend,