Subject: Got Zen?
Date: November 10, 2004 5:52:49 PM EST
Hi
What one principal can help you hit harder, make better chili, and put
a baby to
sleep faster?
As a matter of fact, what one principal will help you get better at
ANY activity?
ANY? You ask.
Yes, any.
Hmmmmm. Will it work for athletic performance? Sure. How about on
the job? Of
course. How about listening to your spouse or children? Especially
then. Okay
. . . what about trying to program a home electronic appliance in time
to record
a televised event which starts in 10 minutes!?! Huh? What about
that?!
Yes, even that.
“Okay,” you finally ask, “what’s the principal? What do I do?”
Relax.
Remember in the movie “Alien?”, when Captain Dallas is hunting around
in the
ventilator shaft for the critter and then -
Personally, whenever I’m tense or impatient because of whatever’s
going on, and
someone tells me to relax, the blood drains from my face and I lunge
at them
across whatever space is dividing us, more or less like the alien in
the
ventilator shaft . . .
And the victim of my response? They got what was coming to them . . .
because
they didn’t tell me HOW to relax.
So here’s how to relax.
Don’t separate yourself from your activity, and Do do an inventory.
For example:
If you’re trying to hit a heavy bag harder, the more you tense, the
less you
involve your body as a whole, and the less effectively you hit. So
first, relax
and try to make your punches “sink” into the bag. Now do an inventory:
Shoulders relaxed? Check. Hips relaxed? Check. And so forth. Be
thorough.
Feel your feet being relaxed and getting traction as you pivot. You
won’t be
able to feel your feet pushing off the floor (and the floor pushing
back) unless
you’re relaxed. Don’t carry tension in your jaw. Any part of you
that’s tense
will act as a bottle neck for communicating the energy of your punch
from your
entire body through your fist to the bag.
Same thing for making chili. Don’t rush or the food will taste like
it was
cooked in a hurry.
If you’re trying to help a baby get to sleep just remember: crying’s
okay.
Really. Babies can’t slam doors or write letters to the editor.
Crying, eating,
pooping, one or two other actions, and – thankfully, mercifully –
sleeping are
about the only outlets they have for now. So relax. Sink into the
chair and let
the baby sink into you. All that noise at bedtime may be annoying,
but it’s
still good energy, in its own way, and the sooner you let it pass
through you,
instead of bouncing off you, the sooner you’ll both be asleep.
In Zen, they call that “Being In The Moment,” or some such thing, that
is,
relaxing, inventorying, and being conscious not only of the action,
but of the
parts working together to perform the action. So if you ever wondered
how
exactly one “Exists in the Moment,” now you know.
New Parents: this is your chance to become Zen Masters.
Rob LaPointe
Email this Article to a Friend
|
