Weight

Weight of the world, Weight loss, weight gain, weighted grades, weighted down, weighted voting areas, weighted feelings...
Ever notice how much our lives revolve around one little word? WEIGHT! There are some that get up every morning and slip into anything that is in their closet. Then there is the rest of the world, that sit in front of there closest hoping that what they pick out won't embarrass them (or others). They hope they can get through the day without loosing a button, or busting a zipper. They pray at the end of the day the line on their stomach will go away by bedtime... Yep weight.  Living on a treadmill, elliptical, running, or a class for some is the rat race that in some cases feels like an endless race to the fridge more than it seems a smaller size.
Why do we do this? Cause for one we grew up in the "clean your plate clubs" only to learn that less was more! We have weighted ourselves down with all sorts of troubles and found ways around them time and time again... often cake...
I smile today as I know I will go home with my gym shoes on ready for the gym (taking off only Wednesdays and Thursdays- and some Tuesday's) and throw myself at some workout... why... well for a few reasons: Not because I have some complete low self esteem that says I am a cow and need to get right... NOPE! I know all things considered, I may not be perfect but my scale has yet to ask for relief. Not yet anyway! No, I'm heading to the gym because well I can! I can walk, skip, even jog a little. That is a HUGE feet all things considering. I want to continue being able to say that exact statement for years to come. I want to stand at everyone of my children's weddings, without help. The weight of the world... at times, weighted feelings, you better believe it! So as I gain a few pounds and loose a few, I know that every day I hit the gym and knock out a 5k on a treadmill, elliptical, or bike I didn't just win another day for me... I won it for them! Weight... a battle of words I think I'm winning...

shaking it up

I have great friends! I have people that will listen to me, cry with me, and tell me when I am way out of line! THOSE ARE TRUE FRIENDS! I find myself from time to time searching for reality checks because my weeks tend to fly by and I make decisions without thinking. I need people around me to say "HEY- are you serious!" If it weren't for those people in my life shaking me now and then, who knows where I would be. I am grateful to all my friends who keep me grounded, but at the same time bring out the crazy in me that expands my horizons and pushes me to be more than a couch potato!
I truly believe everyone has a point when we get lost in ourselves and we start acting in a away that we justify for one reason or another to be okay. It maybe "for the kids", or "just to pay the bills", sometimes its "the need to succeed", but in the end if we took a real long deep hard look in the mirror and were HONEST with ourselves we would quickly realize the backstabbing words, the cruelness shown to others, or the slips in judgement (for the good cause) weren't really all that good after all. Does being right all the time really matter all that much? Is being in "charge" of every situation really all that important? Having a stronghold on every situation sometimes comes at a price, a human price. As I watch my children grow and develop relationships (working, friends, etc) I can only hope I leave them with a sense of kindness and respect towards others regardless of the situation. To care about other people regardless of what they think and feel. Knowing that on the other side of the table, room, area is a person with real feelings and a real heart that can and will be broken. Cut throat actions may get you to the top, but as you stand at the peak looking down (alone) its a long fall. Who will be around to catch you? I prefer to climb with people, bringing them with me, so if we fall, we fall together- laughing the whole way down, dusting ourselves off and plotting a new way to the top. I hope that when we get to the top I can share the view with all my friends and delight in it- whatever view it happens to be... just a dream, gosh, I hope not!