In this podcast, Alexander teacher Amy Ward Brimmer talks to Robert Rickover about how the Technique can help with boredom.
Robert: “One aspect of boredom is not being in the moment and self-aware but being in some other state.”
Amy: “Whenever I’ve been aware and in the present moment, there’s always been a whole lot going on. Boredom is being disconnected from the present moment. Boredom is the way we shut off.”
“Whenever I’m bored, I’m collapsing. I’m pulling down and in on myself. Alexander work gives me the opportunity to wake up and to notice how am I breathing?”
Robert: “I notice kids fiddling in a bored way with their iPhones or electronic equipment. They’re trying to find something to engage them. They often exhibit the worst aspects of their posture at that point. Curled over.”
Amy: “Kids lying around the house will say, I’m bored.”
Robert: “Just look at their bodies when they say that.”
Amy: “Just completely slumped. Almost defeated.”
“My response as a parent to that ‘I’m bored’ complaint is to offer activities. That never works.
“Boredom is a form of resistance to what is.”
Robert: “If you look at Fred Astaire in movies, he’s totally present. It would be interesting to ask Fred Astaire if he ever got bored.”