Joy Showed Up

I raced to the studio tonight to teach the 6P class. I expected at least 10 students. I expected to teach a new series I'm working on, even though there was a part of me that really wasn't 'feeling' the new series, if you know what I mean. 

This new 'Path of the Warrior' series that I'm teaching has several poses that are new to my teaching repertoire, which in and of itself is cool, but it is definitely an extra load of work. And tonight I'm a little on the raw side as I've spent over 18 hours out of the last 48 in an intense workshop at Oxnard College. It is the first weekend in a course that fulfills the classroom hours to become a state certified Alcohol and Drug Abuse/Domestic Violence counselor. Its one of the darker corners of the recovery counseling world. What makes training particularly intense is that as a counselor-to-be, it is of the utmost importance that I clearly come to terms in my own relationship with the subject. Although this is not my first time to look at my stuff here, and I'm sure it won't be my last, it has nonetheless made for a gut wrenching two days and I'm pretty spent.

So I open the doors of the studio, and in the back of my mind I'm wondering how I'm going to pull this class off. I took some of the sage from the front altar, said a little prayer for strength and guidance and wafted the sage to clear my energetic field. I rolled a pink (my favorite color) mat on the floor and did a few gentle sun salutations to get the kinks out. At the precise moment I'd completed the salutations, I heard a student enter the studio. Ok... here we go.

A woman who has been coming to class for several weeks comes in, and we chat comfortably as she sets up her mat and props. I don't know this woman well, but I've always really liked her mojo. She is easy to be with and I enjoy her company. After what seemed to be just a few moments, I glanced at the clock, and saw that it was 6:15. Humm....how about them apples! It's just going to be me and this lovely woman tonight. 'How awesome is that', I thought to myself. 

This woman is of the newby variety. This is the practice that we did:

Sukasana

Sit

Gentle neck stretch 

Seated Cat/cow

Forward fold

Deep breathing with Arms overhead

Gentle seated spine twist

Roll on to backs

Windshield wiper

Single leg lifted, ankle circles

Single leg open to the side

Eye of the Needle

Eye of the Needle twist

switch sides

All fours

Cat/Cow with Lion's Breath

Balasana

1/4 Dog

Downward Dog

All Fours/lower to earth

Sphinx

reverse Windshield wiper

All fours

Down dog

Tadasasa

Side stretch

Uttanasana w/arms overheand

other side

1/4 Sun Salutes

Lunge Salutes with arms overhead/arms behind

Low cobra and Locust in between w/reverse windshield wiper

Roll on to backs

Supported backbend on bolster, legs in supported Baddha Konasana

3 part breathing

drift to Savasana (about 7 minutes total)

Roll off bolster

Flat savasana (about 3 minutes)

Sit

Namaste

I just made up the practice as we went. I don't ever do that. I always have a plan; I'm way to scared to just let it all go. Not that I think its particularly prudent for me to do as a regular teaching  practice, but tonight it just seemed so clear to go with it. It was like this woman and I were tuned to the unfolding of movements and carried by a flow of something a lot bigger than what I could begin to 'plan'. 

And speaking of tunes, another unusual thing about the practice tonight is that I played a homemade CD during the practice. Just as we were finishing the 3 part breath awareness on the bolster and settling into loosening the grip on the breath, "Into the Mystic" by Van Morrison drifted into the room. It cued at the most perfectly orchestrated timing. If I wasn't so relaxed and feeling so yummy, I probably would have been a little spooked. 

Our Namaste was authentic, and the woman and I left the studio;  she went her way, and I drove home. I had a deep sense of calm and peace inside. A grounding and bliss that I hadn't felt in over 48 hours. I was thinking how grateful I felt that this woman had showed up to practice this evening. And then I heard a cosmic "hello and pay attention" when I realized that this lovely woman who showed up tonight...her name is JOY.

God speaks to me, provides for me, and shows up for me in the most delightful and unexpected ways, literally filling my life with abundant joy. How much more obvious can the message get? I am getting better at recognizing it and connecting to it when I let go of my big fat plan for life, relax, and go with the flow.