From Vulture to Zebra

(waves crashing) Hi! V is for vulture, a really big bird, so we're going to lie down on our backs. Roll your spine down. Put your head on the ground, and then lift your hips up off the ground and bring your arms underneath you. Rock a little from side to side, and look how much you can see. Vultures can fly high, and they can observe a lot.

Take a deep breath. This is a really good pose for your back. Deep inhale, exhale. So good. Slowly bring your hips down to the earth.

W's for whale, one of my favorite poses. Let's bring our legs up over our head. Lift your hips up. Hold on to the backs of your hips. Pretend you're a whale in the ocean.

Look at your big whale tail! Let's swim. Take a few deep breaths. Have some fun. Whale is really good pose for your body. Slow down.

Take a few deep inhales and exhales. Very good. From here, lower your legs to the ground. X is for x-ray fish, a fish who lives deep in the ocean. Straighten out your legs.

Push into your arms and then bring the top of your head, your crown, onto the earth. Inhale up. Pretend you're a fish in the ocean. Breathe wide in your lungs, your ribs. Push gently into the earth, breathing.

Beautiful fish. (inhales and exhales) Slowly bring your head back to the ground. Y is for yak. Yaks have big mouths. Let's open up our mouth wide.

Take a big yak yawn. (inhales) Oh! That feels good. We'll bend one knee, and drop it over to the other side, twisting our spines. Reach your arms out, little yaks, breathing. (inhales) Oh! That feels good.

From here, bring your knee back to your chest. Straighten out that leg, and let's do a yak twist to the other side. Bring the other leg in. Drop it over. Open up your arms wide and breathe deeply.

(inhales) Oh! It feels good to twist your spine. And the last letter of the alphabet, Z. Z is for zebra. We're going to rest. Bring that leg back to center, straighten it out, and then close your eyes.

Relax your body on the ground, and take a few moments here to notice how your body feels. Feel the peace, the space. All the gifts that yoga gives to us. Close your eyes and receive that, feel it. That's you.

And you can stay here as long as you want, feeling the earth underneath you, the sky over you. Feel yourself safe, supported, and loved. When you're ready, slowly bend your knees. Roll onto a side, use your hands, and come up. Find a comfortable seat, and take a moment here, as you bring your hands together at your heart, to notice how good yoga makes us feel.

You did such a good job. All the letters and all the animals. May the light in me see the light in you. Thank you.