Thursday, February 28, 2019

February Wrap-Up

I've had several conversations with one of my children who complains that she is tired of waking up, going to school, coming home and doing homework, and waking up and starting all over again; she wants to feel more purpose. My initial reaction was, "Welcome to Life!"

It is true that it seems like I'm constantly getting into bed at night. That is my marker to know that my days pass by quickly, but so much happens in a day; there is so much opportunity and purpose in the Average Day. Getting to go to school and learn all sorts of things is a huge opportunity. The question I have asked my kids is, how much do you engage in that opportunity? Education is expanding and often preparatory for things to come. Line upon line we are prepared for the next stages of life. Same with going to work, being a stay-at-home-mom, you name it.

This felt like an educational month. A preparatory month. A month of opportunities. A purposeful month. A month full of very Average Days.

My New Year's goals of meditating and doing more yoga has been life changing. I have been reading related books that have stretched my mind to completely new realms of understanding and perspective. To the outsider my life is pretty uneventful at this moment, but my mind is engaged and expanding in significant ways. That has been February's highlight for me.

I will say that getting into shape has been harder than I would like to admit. Is it age? Am I really this far gone? These are some questions I have been asking myself! And then I read an interview with yoga instructor Seane Corn. I love this quote that changed my perspective on getting older and all that goes with it:

Contrary to societal opinion, I am excited to have made it to this age and do not feel sad or apologetic for the changes that come with it. It’s part of the deal. You live, and if you’re lucky enough, you get old. Getting older is complex, deeply personal, and I won’t dictate to you what your experience with aging can or should be. Aging, like everything else in life, is a process and different for everyone. I look at aging as a privilege, and as I get older I truly appreciate how short our time is in these bodies, and I don’t want to take a second of this journey for granted. I am very grateful. I’m grateful for my health, my resilience, my commitment to growth and change. Grateful for my family, my yoga practice, my community, my amazing body that can do so many interesting things, and all the love I’ve been given and have been able to give in return. In these 50 years, I have lived big, loved deeply, turned my passion into a career, got to explore the world, buried a parent, lost more beloved animals than I care to think about, opened my heart to God, created my own unconventional family, and have had more wonderful, tragic, and weird moments than I could ever possibly describe. Life, for me, has been deep and beautiful, and although terribly heartbreaking at times, I’ve treasured this wild and unpredictable ride. I can’t wait to see what wisdom comes from the (hopefully) many, many days I have left.  

Isn't that awesome?

Adele and Ceci have reengaged in their previous talent agency, and now that they are both older we are investing a bit more into some classes and workshops that will help them (hopefully) get more jobs. This was a big focus this month with all-day classes and evening classes (two a week) and preparing resumes and having meetings with casting directors and getting head shots and little details up the wazoo. But look at these cuties.

  

I got to watch my friend's little cutie one day. We made muffins for her to take home. Oh how I loved spending time with this independent and smart-as-a-whip two-year-old!


My stepmom and I have been writing her personal history for months and finished it up this month. It was so fun learning about my stepmom through this process! One of the last pictures we added was this picture with my dad and brothers at his last conference due to his battle with cancer. What a great day. I miss my dad. 


We had a family gathering to celebrate cousin Bailey's birthday, and this is the only picture I got of that event:


And lastly, we have been getting all of our ducks in a row for our exchange student's arrival next Tuesday! We're so excited! More about her to come.

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