Ah, has it really been over a month since I last gave this blog any attention? There have been some major adjustments to the dailiness of life, or liveliness of each day, or I guess I could just call it chaos, plain and simple.
First and foremost. I learned a very important thing about myself. I tend to plan things without a calendar in front of me. Perhaps we can call this “organic planning” or “going with the flow”. This leads to filling every (perceived) free spot with something to do, and usually this has nothing to do with vegging in front of the tv, or better yet – sleeping. Add the busy schedules of two teenagers and a tween and the balance becomes quite precarious.
About mid-October I attended the first of eight sessions as part of my yoga teacher training, which admittedly was something I signed up for very last minute, after hearing about it from a fellow instructor. Beyond the challenge of actually doing yoga again (who knew that dancing would create tighter muscles than running), we focused extensively on the attitude behind yoga. Okay, maybe attitude isn’t the right word for most people…. but for the monster bitch I have evolved into over the past couple of years, it definitely applies. I realized that if I were to continue down the same path, the health assessment numbers I take so much pride in (you should see my triglycerides – they are shockingly stellar!), it will all mean nothing if I’ve let myself be so overcome with stress that the entire family hates me and I have no friends.
Fact of the matter is, even though this really long journey of pre-requisites and graduate school has my priority since 2013, it isn’t everyone else’s priority, and I can’t expect everything to be all about me just because I’ve embarked on something that is life changing, challenging, and oftentimes overwhelming. I started to make myself out to be the victim that no one respected and my self-pity was robbing me of finding happiness and contentment in just about everything, even in things that were supposed to feed my soul. As a result, I forgot that I’ve been given an opportunity that isn’t available to everyone, and I was no longer enjoying this journey that I began with so much excitement, curiosity, and wonder. I got into the mindset that I needed to hurry up and finish already so I could move on with my life and start making a real income.
Was that even the why behind this journey in the first place? Um. No. I thought I wanted to help people lead healthier lives, which was why I’ve continued to teach group fitness classes for nearly a decade. But now with all this knowledge and academics under my belt, I could widen my scope to populations beyond the marathon runners and gym rats, beyond the 9:15 a.m. Bodypump classes and weekend excursions with the run club.
After one month it seems that I’ve found a bit of clarity about the future simply by not allowing myself to worry about it too much. I’ve let some things go (tutoring, for one) to alleviate stress and give me more much-needed family time.
There is still a great deal of uncertainty that can really cloud my mood if I let it, but at least I do know that one thing is for certain: Everything will work out.
The Balancing Act 