à la carte spirit by ilona fried
Patience
It Takes a Village to Go Viral
Recently I decided to venture from this blog and submit an article to an online magazine. It was a bit of an experiment to send “Why I Do Feldenkrais Instead of Yoga” to Elephant Journal, a yoga-centric publication whose staff, readers and contributors includes tons of yogis (both committed and disgruntled). Indeed, when I practiced yoga, I avidly devoured many articles in that very … Continue reading
Online Shopping: A First World Zen Parable
One version of a famous Zen tale goes like this: An old farmer had worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit. “Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically. “Maybe,” the farmer replied. The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild … Continue reading
Feldenkrais: The Wine Tasting of Movement
Imagine attending a wine tasting where the pourer fills a large goblet and, instead of handing it you, splashes the contents in your face. Some of the liquid might reach your lips and tongue, but likely you are so shocked by the dousing that you’re gasping for breath rather than inhaling the bouquet. In lieu of finding the precise phrase to describe the wine’s complex notes, you let fly a few … Continue reading
Feldenkrais: How Do We Know We’re at Choice?
My fourth grade teacher Miss Fredericks, whose heavily lacquered blond bouffant resembled a golden helmet, gave us an exercise I still remember. She handed each of us a sheet of mimeographed instructions and asked us to read them to ourselves, silently. Perusing the purplish letters on the white sheet, I began to follow the instructions, each … Continue reading
Feldenkrais: Playing Footsie to Gain Footing
What does it really mean to stand on our own two feet? Until I sustained an injury walking El Camino de Santiago, I hadn’t given much attention to my feet, except to lament their rather large size. In our culture, we typically wrap our feet in shoes during autumn and winter and bare them, to various degrees, in … Continue reading
à la carte spirit by ilona fried 
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