It's been an exciting week. It's been an even more exciting weekend because it's the first weekend that I don't have an event scheduled (well at least for the last month). I also have Monday off for President's Day and it is gloriously unscheduled for the most part.
Last night Jack and I went to Rice to see "Star Geeks" as our Valentine's Day date. The musical was written and directed by from Sid students. Going to see it meant that we didn't have to deal with the crowds that Valentine's Day + Friday was bound to yield. It also meant we were being good Sid Associates. The musical pretty much embodied my freshman year at Rice, and in particular the MOB- hard to understand, slightly off-key, and lots of sci-fi/fantasy references I didn't understand.
It made me super nostalgic though. I get nostalgic a lot though, ask my husband.
Wednesday night I went to the gym and ran 4 miles at a pace that is definitely higher than my natural pace. I also turn bright red when I'm running so I look like I've done a lot more than I have when I'm finished. Back in the locker room another woman entered, looked at me, put her head against a locker, and said "today was not a good day to work out." My response: "yeah, but you're here and that's what counts." Who have I become? When did I start having that response to working out?
That's leading me to my nostalgia. Outside of my home I spend the majority of my time at work (in a school), at church, or at the gym. This week I realized that in all of those places, being "there" is the major hurdle. And that no matter how much you suck at being there, you're bound to get better by virtue of being there.
School? Of course being actively engaged in learning is the most direct way to learn. And of course people learn by their own means, but being in an environment that fosters learning has to make you pick up something, right?
Church? I don't understand everything about God. I won't pretend that I even understand a significant amount. I'm bad at praying. I'm bad at finding quiet time for bible study and not getting distracted. But you know what, consistently being in a place with a bunch of other people who are in the same spot means that I'm growing. Growing alongside people who have become family. Getting there is half the struggle, but I find it quite impossible to not grow at least some when I'm there.
Gym? I think this has become the most evident for me. I ran 8.25 miles today (only 0.75 miles short of where I should be in the half-marathos training). In June I could barely run one mile. Earlier this year the Oatmeal wrote a comic about why running is awesome. I agree to most of his points. But here's the thing I have learned to love most about running- no matter what I do, I get better. Even if I only run ten minutes, I get better.
Running and I have had a checkered past. In ninth grade, my PE teacher timed us running 1.5 miles. It was a test grade. I made a C- on it. Not because I didn't finish the 1.5 miles, but because I didn't finish in the time she thought we should- not that we had been doing a running unit or anything to improve our running times, she arbitrarily decided one week that this was happening. According to her we should have been able to run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes. It took me 21 minutes. I hated running. I hated it because I wasn't good enough at it.
But I ran 8.25 miles today.
I ran 8.25 miles at a slow pace, with an ugly stance. But I finished. Even today I can't run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes. Do you know what pace that is? 6 mph. My best pace right now is an even 5.3 mph and that's only after 6 months. But I show up. I run. I get better. Every step is getting better. I show up for yoga and get better (this week's smaller than usual and non-new people class meant that we "flipped" our downward dog, and did this series of awesomeness).
It's about being there. I'm here.
Be where you are. Don't miss out on something because you aren't where you are.
The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You create a good future by creating a good present. - Eckhart Tolle
The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You crIt may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad. - C.S. Lewis
Last night Jack and I went to Rice to see "Star Geeks" as our Valentine's Day date. The musical was written and directed by from Sid students. Going to see it meant that we didn't have to deal with the crowds that Valentine's Day + Friday was bound to yield. It also meant we were being good Sid Associates. The musical pretty much embodied my freshman year at Rice, and in particular the MOB- hard to understand, slightly off-key, and lots of sci-fi/fantasy references I didn't understand.
It made me super nostalgic though. I get nostalgic a lot though, ask my husband.
Wednesday night I went to the gym and ran 4 miles at a pace that is definitely higher than my natural pace. I also turn bright red when I'm running so I look like I've done a lot more than I have when I'm finished. Back in the locker room another woman entered, looked at me, put her head against a locker, and said "today was not a good day to work out." My response: "yeah, but you're here and that's what counts." Who have I become? When did I start having that response to working out?
That's leading me to my nostalgia. Outside of my home I spend the majority of my time at work (in a school), at church, or at the gym. This week I realized that in all of those places, being "there" is the major hurdle. And that no matter how much you suck at being there, you're bound to get better by virtue of being there.
School? Of course being actively engaged in learning is the most direct way to learn. And of course people learn by their own means, but being in an environment that fosters learning has to make you pick up something, right?
Church? I don't understand everything about God. I won't pretend that I even understand a significant amount. I'm bad at praying. I'm bad at finding quiet time for bible study and not getting distracted. But you know what, consistently being in a place with a bunch of other people who are in the same spot means that I'm growing. Growing alongside people who have become family. Getting there is half the struggle, but I find it quite impossible to not grow at least some when I'm there.
Gym? I think this has become the most evident for me. I ran 8.25 miles today (only 0.75 miles short of where I should be in the half-marathos training). In June I could barely run one mile. Earlier this year the Oatmeal wrote a comic about why running is awesome. I agree to most of his points. But here's the thing I have learned to love most about running- no matter what I do, I get better. Even if I only run ten minutes, I get better.
Running and I have had a checkered past. In ninth grade, my PE teacher timed us running 1.5 miles. It was a test grade. I made a C- on it. Not because I didn't finish the 1.5 miles, but because I didn't finish in the time she thought we should- not that we had been doing a running unit or anything to improve our running times, she arbitrarily decided one week that this was happening. According to her we should have been able to run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes. It took me 21 minutes. I hated running. I hated it because I wasn't good enough at it.
But I ran 8.25 miles today.
I ran 8.25 miles at a slow pace, with an ugly stance. But I finished. Even today I can't run 1.5 miles in 15 minutes. Do you know what pace that is? 6 mph. My best pace right now is an even 5.3 mph and that's only after 6 months. But I show up. I run. I get better. Every step is getting better. I show up for yoga and get better (this week's smaller than usual and non-new people class meant that we "flipped" our downward dog, and did this series of awesomeness).
It's about being there. I'm here.
Be where you are. Don't miss out on something because you aren't where you are.
The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You create a good future by creating a good present. - Eckhart Tolle
The power for creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You crIt may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad. - C.S. Lewis
Pictures from this week:
You're here! Johana surprised Elizabeth with a visit from Prague and I got some beautiful pictures from the roof of our condo building at sunset on the first sunny day in the last 2 weeks.
Attempt at learning to cook, volume 1- Balsamic Vinegar and Sugar Free Maple Sugar glazed salmon.
Happy Valentine's Day! Jack made me a low-calorie Edible Arrangement and sent me tulips, because he's an amazing husband like that.
Jack's D&D bag also holds cats.
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