Saturday, February 26, 2011

Get Well Soon

Evidently I spoke too soon. Just as I thought I was finally well enough to move on living my inspired life, another bug took hold of me. And of course, each bout of being sick has left me feeling at least a shade more miserable than the one prior. Oh what a wretched week it has been! And that's putting it quite nicely.

The good news is the doctor finally loaded me up with an arsenal of drugs to try to combat bronchitis and the flu. Hopefully this will help me finally get well once and for all so I can actually get on with my life again. It's killing me to be down so long.

It pains me that I am blogging about being sick. I wish that I had the energy to write about the many other things that currently touch my heart and my soul. I am trying to be patient with being sick--to learn what I can from every moment in my life, even when I am simply lying in bed coughing up a lung.

There are some things in life we don't have much control over in some respects, but we do have a lot of control over how we choose to respond to them. So, although a part of me resents having spent probably at least 6 of the last 8 weeks being sick in some form or another, I am thankful for an earnest heart that is striving to maintain a sense of peace, optimism, hope and reverence for my very life. It's all a gift. Every obstacle is a learning opportunity if we are willing to open our eyes to it as a teachable moment. I hope I will always live life with my eyes open. Actually, even more importantly, I hope I will always live into my future with an open heart as well.

In the meantime, I am just going to be praying for some open lungs!

Sunday, February 20, 2011

30 Day Return Policy

So, I'm sitting here cleaning off my desk at home, and I feel compelled to come here to my blog page. I notice immediately that my last post was January 20...and it's now February 20. 30 days! It's time for a new post. I've written several posts in my head on the fly in recent weeks as life has kept me too preoccupied to find time for blogging in the real physical sense. Although there have been many topics that have touched me in the last 30 days since my last post, I am jumping in to this post rather suddenly without any real plan for what's going to come out as my fingers strike the keyboard. Not my usual method...so it could get interesting...

2011 started out with a bang for me. I felt lots of amazing, inspiring energy leading up to the New Year as I was looking forward to what I think is going to a beautiful, fun, and fulfilling year for me in many ways. I had just rejoined the gym to continue working on my fitness goals, and I was thriving in my workouts which metaphorically spilled over into my every day life and led me to exclaim with a bright smile, "I'm having a love affair with my life!"

But, as January arrived I suddenly picked up a bad cold. Then, just as I was getting better mid-month I picked up a nasty virus. I spent most of the month being sick...and have only just started feeling like a normal human being again in the last couple of weeks. So, it was a real momentum killer to all that passion I was riding towards the end of December. It's so frustrating to have desires flaring in your heart, but to be limited from being able to act on them! Lately I've been trying to remind myself that I don't have to live my entire life in one day. It's not the end of the world to have to pace your exuberance.

So, here I am, returning after a 30 day break from blogging. What do I feel I have to say? Where am I now in comparison to 30 days ago? I guess, to use an all-too-common metaphor, I am getting ready for a new chapter in my life. The depth of winter has passed as the days are finally beginning to get longer and spring is getting closer; I'm finally well enough to return to a more regular workout regimen--something that fuels my passion and continues to inspire me in all facets of my life; my basketball season has ended, freeing up my weekends for alternative activities including weekend road trips (my sister in Bellingham is particularly excited about this!); and after a year of several important growth spurts, I'm simply looking forward to putting all the new things that I've learned about myself into play as I continue on in this fascinating journey of life. I can't wait to see what new things are in store and discover what such things may have to teach me about myself and about the world around me.

And hopefully this new chapter will also allow more adequate blogging time!