One of the better kept secrets of dancers, opera singers, athletes and performers nationwide, the supple 84-year-old, former dancer with the Ballet Russe and on Broadway, and teacher at The Metropolitan Opera, softly continues... "Being aware of your body can turn a negative situation into a positive experience. I did it again only yesterday-I suffered a terrible shock and I turned it around."

Milton doesn't know it, but he has been a strong influence on my life since the early 1960s when as a teenage voice and opera major at Juilliard School of Music I wandered into The Milton Feher School of Dance and Relaxation on West 58th Street, NYC. We didn't meet at that time, but luck directed me to an amazing 16-page booklet called The Art of Walking, an enlightening five-part series originally written for Prevention magazine.

"What happens when you get upset?" quizzes the guru of effortless glide.

"Your muscles stiffen and you can't respond freely. When you become very upset, your shoulders rise, abdomen tightens and your eyes tense. A message shoots to your brain telling it how difficult life can be. Your hands become fists, toes curl up off the ground, and because your abdomen is tight, you become short of breath. This is true of any negative response." Enough to make a youngster hobble, I thought. In fact, as my shoulders rose, tummy tightened, eyes narrowed and toes and fingers curled, I felt totally immobile.

"If you want to be more at ease, free and rested, simply make contact with the ground," Feher coos. "Feel your soles touch the inside of your shoes. Feel your toes stretch out and lengthen."

Ah, that's better. A deep, full breath fills my lungs. "When your feet contact the Earth, you have a base of operation, a foothold, a stage on which to perform. "Your leg muscles ease to comfortably carry your upper body. This offers your trunk a wonderful throne on which to sit. You feel light and strong because your back can now support you," he elaborates.

"Connect with your feet to relax your trunk. This also lengthens your neck and allows blood to flow freely to your brain and eyes. But tighten down and your neck pinches off like a knotted garden hose. This is why you can't see straight when you're upset. And when you can't see clearly, your spirit suffers. So to free your spirit, you must be able to feel your body totally.

"You see, security equals relaxation. When you are relaxed, your body strengthens. Muscles at rest lengthen and your spine straightens."

Like a row of dominos, I note. Stay grounded and your spirit can soar. A free spirit is a young spirit. A relaxed body is a young body.

"But it takes practice to be able to respond freely when you're on the job or in the middle of a crowd," Feher explains. "You have to consciously remind yourself to feel your feet. "Stand up and bend over as if you are tired," he gently commands. "Let your head slump forward. Now straighten up quickly ten times. The faster you go, the easier it is to feel that you must press down to straighten up. Observe that not only are your legs pushing. Hips, waist, chest, shoulders, neck-every segment works. Your knees will straighten unconsciously, buttocks tuck under, tummy grows flatter, your chest is raised and your neck is more in line with your feet. Pressing down straightens you up completely." My basic realization exercise in tow, the agile dance therapist continues. "To relax your arms, picture a dot at the tip of your middle finger and another at the uppermost tip of your arm bone, just where it connects to the socket. See nothing in between." I do it and wow! Another deep breath almost lifts me off the ground.

"Martha Graham knew about the dots," Feher reveals, "but she forgot and became arthritic. "To straighten your back, picture a dot at the uppermost tip of your head and another at the bottommost tip of your spine with nothing but space in-between." Miraculously, my entire body aligns. My knees flex slightly and, as my pelvis tilts and tucks under, tension dissolves.

The master of movement offers more insight. "Let me tell you a secret," he confides, "the Pope would have better health if he had better posture. He stands with his head bent way forward; his shoulders are rounded, tummy out. But when he stands on the balcony to offer a blessing, his head and hands raise and his heels rest on the ground to better align his body and he connects with the throng."

About a well respected TV moderator Feher notes, "Bill ends his sentences with a nod. This continually stresses his heart. Had he altered this movement, he could have avoided his heart attack."

The knowledge Milton Feher has garnered during his 60 year dialog with balance can fill tomes. His oldest student at 99 years of age reported that she was relieved of arthritis due to Feher's method and was moving better than she did in her 70s. Besides this, she tossed the pillow she had secreted under her dress to disguise a radically swayed back.

Still going strong and forever seeking ways to better align body and mind, Feher would like to compare notes with professionals working on the cutting edge of body/mind alignment, including neurologists who are open to the idea that all body motions change the relationships of nerves to muscles.

"My work revitalizes me," he says, adding emphatically, "But, according to my method, if you feel effort in any exercise, it is wrong."

To contact Milton Feher and for information on his cassettes and publications, including The Art of Walking, call (212) 246-4144. End. ŠJulia Busch