Sometimes I stop momentarily and ask myself if I'm  happy.  It's true!  Like many people, I know that I have the habit of zooming along with all of my tasks and projects and students, and the entire day has gone by without even one thought of repose for myself.  Even if I have structured time for reflection and meditation, somehow the time gets away from me and I have put my own well being way down on the list somewhere.  But August has always been my favorite time of the year.  I love the sound of the Cicadas singing in the evening.  The sound really fills me up, and makes me happy!  The hot weather in NY forces me to slow way down and appreciate my life, as if there were no agendas to carry out.  If there were a beach nearby, even better, then I could walk for miles alone or with a friend.  I am so grateful that I found the Alexander Technique so many years ago.  My tension and intensity was even worse back then, and at least I have some tools in which to find repose, and in a moment by moment way, to check in with myself.  Am I freeing my neck?  (That's important in the AT, just ask any teacher in your area).  Am I noticing my breathing?  Not even to change anything or count inhales and exhales, just notice.  Am I feeling my feet move on the ground, sand, dew?  Am I alive and well in my own body?  Sometimes the real pursuit of happiness is in the little things, and the time we take between moments, if you will, to feel ourselves alive, breathing, being without any agenda.  I wish you a beautiful, calm, happy end of August, and a way to shine in 2009!