Remember when you were a teenager and the most important thing in your life, besides what you were wearing to school, was what music you listened to?  Your music defined who you were and who your friends were and your moods, and your style.  When I was in high school there was reggae/ska, hop-hop, punk, old parents rock that was now cool because you just found it.  Remember the first time you heard The Doors or Jimi Hendrix, or Led Zeppelin?  I found the albums in my parents collection along with Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye.  Apparently at some point my parents were cool.  Who knew.  The reason I bring this up is because now I am in the category of an “older person” who talk about how much I love music.

Once again at Vistamar high school I am reminded of you teen years and the similarity of that which never changes, our love of music.  As a teenager you are being told what to do, how to do it, where to go and when.  For some reason music is an escape.  We can listen to a song that brings up certain feelings or emotions and ride those emotions.  Remember your first concert?  Remember every one after that?  Seeing your favorite band live?  Saving up from your part time job or doing chores to make extra cash so you could go?  Or last resort…begging?  My first concert was in 1982, The US festival.  It was in the Augora Hills in the middle of nowhere.  It was 100 degrees and my best friend and I went.  I was 12 and my step dad brought us.  Yes, I got to see The Cars, The Police, The B-52’s, Oingo Boingo, The Beat, and more.  Funny these bands are mostly still around.  In any event that defined me and paved the way for a life love affair with music.

I still get to use music of all genres today.  I play music while I teach Yoga classes.  I have different themes and sometimes shuffle the IPOD just for fun.  So coming back to the high school Yoga Class we have started sharing our playlists during Yoga.  For the past two weeks they have been making up playlists with their favorite musical selections.  I have to say I am impressed.  One of the kids, Noah is a musician and guitarist and lives for his music.  The quote yesterday, after we listened to his playlist, was “I spend 40% of my life thinking about, listening to, and playing music”. Ben another outspoken student, who happens to like hip-hop, asked him what he did with the other 60% of his time.   Whatever it was it didn’t sounds as cool. It’s like music is an escape from all the stresses of high school.  So in Noah’s playlist was The Beastie Boys, Santana, and Sublime.  Santeria was very interesting for Savasana.

There is a gap that is bridged when music is involved.  No matter the age we all can relate to how we felt the first time we heard Stairway to Heaven or Mirror in the Bathroom.  I never thought I’d be that person who said “When I was your age…”, but I am.  I can’t help it because like these kids music is my life.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 at 3:48 pm and is filed under Yoga for Teens. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.