Art comes first. Life comes first. Joy comes first. Love comes first.
The sushi chef is bent over his work, his art. Right now, this is his life; nothing else matters. He’s a human being in the moment. His body forms the shape of…of a guy making sushi.
He may someday develop pain, diminish his breathing capacity and all that; and yet there is something very human, life-affirming, and inevitable about what he’s doing.
Would he be a better sushi chef if he studied the Alexander Technique? No one knows.
For the surgeon, the patient lying on the operating table comes first. And, if the patient is a friend or family, that’s the way we’d want it.
The music, the art, the patient is what’s paramount. There are countless examples of brilliant, genius musicians, artists, surgeons, and sushi chefs, with horrible use. Would they be better at their craft with Alexander lessons? Perhaps. Would Michael Jordan have been a better basketball player if he hadn’t tensed his face and tongue when driving to the basket? No one knows. We know that after retiring decades ago, he is still considered the greatest.
Noted Alexander Technique teacher Elisabeth Walker said her use was at it’s worst while she’s knitting. She added: ” I think it’s because I love it so much. Elisabeth’s daughter, Lucia, said that often times our use is at it’s worst when we’re “being most human”—tossing back your head and laughing.
As for me— I was in severe, unrelenting neck pain, so changing my use with the Alexander Technique was life changing, and life saving. I’m lucky I found it.
Release your neck, letting your head rotate forward, and rise up.
Breathe fully, and let a smile happen.
Mark Josefsberg-Alexander Technique NYC
(917) 709-4648
Image Courtesy of Freedigitalphotos.net-“Preparing A Plate Of Sashimi” by Stuart Miles
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