I’ve often said that my perfect job would be to sit in my ivory tower solving the riddles of life by helping other people solve theirs. Seems I’ve gotten my wish.
The Feldenkrais Method popped into my life in the early 1990s while I was searching for a way to help my daughter who has Cerebral Palsy. Though I came to the Method to help her, I stayed because of all the positive changes it effected in me. A four-year bout of sciatica was tamed, the nagging pain of an old back injury was quelled, and I developed the self-awareness tools I needed to see me through a life threatening illness. Since 1992, I’ve been helping others discover that same potential for positive change hidden within themselves.
I was exceptionally lucky to have Gaby Yaron, one of Dr. Feldenkrais’s original students, as my primary teacher. I can still feel her hands and hear her voice when I am teaching. For those not familiar with the Method, training to become a practitioner is a four-year commitment. After two years, trainees are certified to teach Awareness Through Movement. Hands-on certification takes another two years. I graduated from the first Chicago training, fully certified in 1994. I qualified as an Assistant Trainer in 2000 and since then have been helping new trainees develop their skills.
A while ago I was interviewed for the local paper. The reporter caught me off guard by asking next to nothing about what I did. There was none of the familiar, “Felden-WHAT?”, that I had come to expect. Instead she asked about my favorite book – “The Phantom Tollbooth”; movie – Bread and Tulips, and other bits and bobs about my interests. I’m an architecture junky and until recently volunteered as a docent for the Chicago Architecture Foundation. Caution – shameless plug alert!! The CAF offers amazing tours. Check them out at http://www.architecture.org/tours. I now volunteer at my daughter’s day program, bringing the joys and benefits of the Feldenkrais Method to people with disabilities. One of my fondest dreams is to create a network of practitioners who offer their services, bringing gentle touch and guided awareness to those less-able.
The nuts and bolts of my past include degrees in Environmental Engineering and Urban and Environmental Studies, stints on the east coast and Europe, and a panoply of adventures too numerous to mention. Life does take funny turns. Seat belt buckled, chair in upright position, tray table locked – I’m ready for take-off and along for the ride.
Life Options 