August in Kansas is usually very hot, like in the mid to upper 90s with an equal amount of humidity, but so far it’s been pretty mild. I’m hoping it’s a harbinger of an early and very long Fall. Late Summer through Fall is my favorite time of year. I’ve always loved the change from the oppressive heat of Summer into the cooler nights and milder days.

The Kansas sky in the Summer is very washed out, in the Fall it’s a brilliant blue. The plants seed and start to dry out changing their look and smell. Going for a walk this time of year is much more of a sensory experience for me.

I once read that people who live in areas where there’s a change of seasons are often more emotionally balanced and experience less depression. For me it’s true. It’s a time to feel the rhythm of nature, to remember that everything changes (even your mood). My mood changes and I find it exciting when Fall is just around the corner. The only season I’m not real crazy about is Spring because in Kansas that often means a lot of storms and they bring rain, flooding and tornadoes. Other than that I’m good.

The Dog Whisperer recently had a show on where he was re-training a Vizsla who was extremely scared/shy after his owner moved from the country to the city. The dog was afraid of everything and walked with its body in a cowering position, head down, ears back and tail tucked firmly between its legs.

In training this dog Ceasar took one end of the leash and put it around the dog’s tail so that when they walked its tail could be held up. His reasoning was that it signaled “I’m confident’ to the dog. It was amazing to see how such a simple thing did make an immediate difference.

Earlier in the week my Tai Chi teacher was talking about how important it is when practicing Chi Gong & Tai Chi to at least have a half-smile on your face. They sometimes call it an ‘inner smile’. In Aikido they talk about ‘practicing in a joyful manner’. The reasoning is the same as it was for the Viszla. If you constantly practice in a light and happy manner, it will affect you in a positive way.

It’s not always easy to do when you’re black dog is telling you to frown but over time it definitely helps. I found myself using it over the weekend when we had to do a Tai Chi performance at a very large ethnic festival in a park. The nice weather brought out several thousand people who gathered around the stage to watch all the various groups perform. Looking out on so many people caused me to have some anxiety. When I felt it growing I made the conscious decision to breath deeply and smile. Using square breathing where you breath in, hold it, breath out, hold it, etc. for the same count did much to alleviate my anxiety. Smiling made me feel more confident and light-hearted. I knew even if I screwed up and made a mistake it was very unlikely that anyone would notice and even if they did it was hardly the end of the world.

The outcome? Everything was fine. It was a nice outing with my friends, a good performance, free dim-sum dinner afterwards and I felt better for having done it. Not a bad weekend at all.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 at 10:50 am and is filed under anxiety, fear, positive attitude.