A brilliant Feldenkrais mentor once told me that we must learn to “follow the yes,” to sense where there is resistance and look for what is willing to yield. In his less than successful comedy, The Yes Man, Jim Carrey portrays a man who makes a covenant to say “yes” to EVERYTHING, leading to some funny and many painful moments. He was unable to trust his own “no.”
When I encounter resistance as I try to move through life, how can I know when my yes should be a no? How can I tell when my no is a cop out? How can I make my no, a yes in order to realize my dream? (Some good stuff did actually happen to Jim Carrey’s character because of the yes.)
Somewhere in there is learning the art of discernment. Is my no the result of fear, or because I know this choice is not healthy? Is my yes being swept away by someone’s influence or embracing the opportunity? Sometimes, the mind can’t find the answer, words don’t help the thinking process.
When I feel I’m spinning in indecision, I have found it incredibly helpful to lie down and do an Awareness Through Movement® lesson. It really doesn’t matter which one. By letting go of the mental gymnastics, I can tune into the yes and the no in my movement choices. I can look for options, notice my held breath, let go of holding. More often than not, when I get up, the definition of yes has changed so that I have a direction forward. Here’s one of my favorite YES lessons :-). It will take the no right out of you.
When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Lie Down
