Tuesday, August 22: Fear of Change, Joy of Change, Feldenkrais

WHAT LEARNING, WHAT FUN?
This is what I’d love to see: a bunch of people exploring Feldenkrais® classes and learning how to move with more ease and joy. I’d love to see them learning as well the underpinnings of Feldenkrais, which is an attitude of exploration and being present and discovery. In so much of life, including lots of things that are “good” for you, like yoga and Pilates and even the way most people go about sports, the emphasis is on “this is the way to do it.”

There is a right way.

There is a wrong way.

If you do it the right way, you will be good, or better at yoga/tennis/golf, or using your abs (the Pilates obsession) or whatever. But will you be better at life? Will you be better at learning? If you are driven, you may notch up your level of competence, and in activities like yoga, where just moving is so much better than the usual lolling around that passes for most people’s lives, you will get the hour and a half where you actually realize that it is pretty interesting to have and move and be in a body.

But you won’t really get clues that will help you go about solving a mental problem or an emotional problem, or some movement puzzle other than the move/pose/asana being taught.

So, as I’ve asked many times before: are you willing to learn?

If so, jump on aboard, come join one of the weekly outdoors classes.

OUTDOORS? OHMYGOD, isn’t that different than what I’m used to? What if a bug or a pollen grain or a bumpy piece of ground inflicts my life? Ah, isn’t that nice, to have some new impressions: breathing fresh air, laying on the real Earth, looking up into the real sky. Just to do that is worth the price of admission, and you get to learn about learning to boot.

Why does to boot, mean “in addition?” Don’t know.

Not knowing is one of life’s glories and it is how Feldenkrais lessons are set up: chances to be gently and non-stressful exposed to the unknown, which means stress. OHMYGOD, STRESS? Yes, a little stress is the price of learning.

Fear of a little stress is why people won’t hang out in the present when they start to feel bad, or people are pressuring them to “fit in,” or when their minds are starting up the inner yammer that makes them miserable.

Feeling bad? OHMYGOD. Time to eat. Drink. Drive somewhere and shop. Get on the cell phone. Get lost in the internet. Go into a funk. Jog and or exercise compulsively, as a whip to beat the funk away.

And so on.

Lots of strategies to avoid feeling bad, instead of staying present and being peaceful and happy inside the unhappiness.

What does that have to do with Feldenkrais? It is weird to many people. Simple movements that are all about inner experience and nothing about showing off or getting a sexier bod. Though you could use Feldenkrais ideas and lessons to radically improve the rate at which you learn yoga or recuperate from an accident. Again, this is scary to many, because this means: OHMYGOD, I MIGHT CHANGE.

Yes, terror upon terrors, Feldenkrais, being present, raw foods, Byron Katie work, connecting with nature: these will all lead you to transformation. If you can stand this as a wonderful delightful amazing opportunity and possibility come on in, join the party, read on.

And come to some Feldenkrais lessons.

P.S.
If you’ve read this far and want a free, mini-Feldie lesson, try this :
http://www.desk-trainer.com/exercises/loaderGui.php