I wonder: do teachers in high school ever talk about life and death? Today, my students were an abstracted bunch during the final meditation. Most of them tried to maintain their posture and keep focused, but I could feel their struggle.
  They sit on cushions pushed a bit from the walls, facing inward. We end, they stand, hands in gassho. I make a parting statement. "You may not realize this, but right now you are practicing life and death. Don't take this practice for granted."