One of the most irritating things anyone can say to me is “relax.” Or any slang word referencing the same. “Chill,” “unlax,” “be cool,” “hang loose,” and so on. By telling me to do that, the implication is of course, that I am NOT relaxed. I AM relaxed, dammit!
Seriously, relaxing is not as easy as it sounds. Seems to me that if you have to make a concerted effort to relax, you negate the value of what you are trying to do! Relaxing is not something you just do – it is something that happens when the right frame of mind, the right set of circumstances and/or the right situation happens, so you can mellow into the moment spontaneously and casually. I actually find it hard to relax. I am ADD, and fidgety by nature. Sitting down to watch a movie isn’t a relaxing enterprise for me unless I (a) have something to eat or drink and (b) something to do with my hands. Like crochet. I can’t just SIT.
One of the current pleasures of my life is my two dachshunds, Dixie (a smooth red tweenie, 3-1/2-year-old female) and Kadie (a long-haired brown and tan tweenie 2-1/2-year-old female). They actually can force me into a mode where relaxation can happen. Also very beneficial for meditating, but we will get to that another day. As soon as I sit down in the living room, one or both of them will bounce into my lap for a cuddle. Once they are there, curled up, content, affectionate and totally laid-back, I feel guilty about putting them down! So my usual response is to sigh and snuggle up and be involved in the moment. I can consciously feel myself letting go of tension, my neck and shoulders loosening up, my stomach unclenching, and my heart rate slowing. It is a beneficent and blessed feeling, and with that kind of relaxation comes true peace and ease.
There are other forms of (legal) relaxing that I indulge in, and I will explore those as the weeks meander on within this blog’s “pages.” For now, I am content to say, relaxation comes in all shapes and sizes, just like people (and dogs) so I will go relax in front of a warm TV (hubby is watching football) with a lapful of pooches!
Exactly right, Miss Laura! It turns out that sitting in the chicken pen will create a state of relaxation that rivals anything I’ve ever experienced while under the influence of painkillers. Who knew?