Now, lest you get the idea that the only-way to relax is by shutting yourself off from the world and lying down on a couch, it will be well to remember that there are many activities that in themselves are relaxing. Activities entirely unlike what you do regularly are relaxing. By setting other muscles and brain patterns into operation than those you use ordinarily, you are able to relax the tired ones. Physical exercise is good for the man who sits at a desk all day long, and reading is good for the man who is on his feet every minute of the day. One of the most simple and yet one of the most useful activities in the world is stretching. If you have the chance, watch a cat stretch. You will see that no part of her body escapes this useful inventory of muscles. She finds every one and stretches it. Starting with the legs, she will reach out straight, spread the toes of each foot, then push her head out, nose first, as far as possible. To make doubly sure that no muscle has escaped, the cat will rise and stretch her back by bending in the middle and pushing up with the hind legs. Many human beings find that just such a stretch as this helps them to sleep at night and to rise in the morning. Certainly there is something satisfying about a good stretch.

Closely related to stretching is the exercise of rippling the abdominal muscles in such a way as to give the stomach and intestines a good rolling. This seems to help keep the blood in circulation and hence makes relaxation more easy.

Knitting is a restful activity. In fact, almost any hobby will help you to relax.

Hobbies of the right kind are notoriously good for helping relaxation, especially if your hobby is entirely different from the thing you do regularly. The postman who walks as a hobby is not apt to find relaxation for his leg muscles, but to many people who sit at a desk all day long walking is the best kind of change. Aimless walking, wandering about just where fancy takes you, is especially restful. Some persons enjoy aimless window shopping in the city, while others prefer to find some woodland trail and saunter along at a lazy gait. You can best tell what will suit your particular pattern of life by trying various methods of relaxing.

In Conclusion

Perhaps, from the preceding pages you have gathered some ideas of how your leisure can be more valuable to you if you learn how to relax at the proper times. As we said in the beginning, it is not easy to outline any procedure that will work for all people. With these few helps, it is up to you to work out a pattern that fits into your scheme of life. The important thing, however, is to sec to it that you find some plan that does work. It may be the most homely thing in the world, such as taking off your shoes and bathing your feet in warm water or putting your feet in the air while flat on your back, but whatever works is worth trying so long as it brings results. Relaxation is important to your mental and physical health. As Elbert Hubbard said, "Do not take this life too seriously. You will not get out of it alive anyway."

Some Interesting Things To Do

1. What "savages" of civilization keep you from relaxing? (Alarm clock, phone, etc.)

2. Write a short short story for the class in which you describe your own experience in a recent attempt to relax. Naps I Tried to Take and Fishing with the Girl Friend are two ideas for titles.

3. Make a chart for yourself to test your best ways of relaxing at home, and cut pictures from magazines to illustrate it, such as a comfortable bed, a blue-colored room, a bathtub, a radio.

Rest Best

(1) in a quiet place (mention favorite spots)

(2) (fill in your own ideas)

4. Make a similar chart entitled How I Relax outside My Home.

5. Talk to several adults and find out what their favorite form of relaxation is. Make a list of these, such as Uncle Joe - puttering in the garden, golf Aunt Mary - sewing, rocking, walking Dr. Frank - pasting clippings in scrapbook

6. Try some of the forms of relaxation mentioned in this chapter. Which ones suit you best?

7. List the suggestions in this chapter that would have an effect on you the opposite to relaxation. (Baths wake some people up!)

8. Find pictures to illustrate the right and wrong ways of living, which are touched upon in this chapter, such as rushing, arguing, and bolting down food.

9. Make a list of the sounds that are restful to you.

10. Magazine articles on relaxation are plentiful. Send out scouts to track some down for tomorrow's lesson. What new points do they make?

11. Suppose you decided to produce a movie on How to Relax. What scenes would you include?

Helpful References

Burns, C. D., Leisure in the Modern World.

Cuttcn, G. B., The Threat oj Leisure. Greenbie, M. L., The Arts oj Leisure. Jacobson, E., You Must Relax. Overstreet, H. A., Guide to Civilized Leisure.

Pack, A. N., The Challenge oj Leisure. Pitkin, W. B., Take It Easy. Steiner, J. F., "Challenge of the New Leisure," Recreation^ February, 1934.

PART 17

More words

The Camp Nestles beneath the Towering Peaks of the Rockies.