the futile fight against flexibility
My yoga outfit waited patiently for me in my bag all day ready for the 4:30 gentle and restorative class. The day blew by in a frenzy of grading, discussing potential TED talk titles, and examining various student slides to ensure they were aesthetically pleasing.
After giving Thursday's vinyasa class my everything, I was ready for a really intentional and calm class. Sometimes, it's not really up to what you think you're ready for, and sometimes you are actually ready for more. Thank you crazy Friday Fort Worth traffic fore helping bring me to this slightly cliche epiphany. There is a window, a magic window of time that I can leave and not get caught in any gridlock traffic, and I left in that window headed to my 4:30 class that I was ready to have extract the tension of the week.
However, I was wrong. Gridlocked for 20 extra minutes. I would have had to leave before school ended to even had a chance to make the class, but of course I had no idea. So I call the studio and deregister from it and commit to attending the beginners yoga class at 6 because I only hope I will be able to get through the traffic by then. (Okay that was a little extra, but Friday traffic can feel like the worst.)
After feeding my sweet puppies dinner and resting for a little bit, I gather myself and drive to 3Tree. My mindset is still wishing for the class I missed, but once I walk in I realize that there is nothing I can do about it and I am here now for the next class which is with an instructor I enjoy (she talks a lot about the busyness in our minds and clutter from our lives - I relate, me over here, so much!). She's who I spoke to about having to deregister when Google Maps informed me that I would be adding 20 minutes to the expected travel time. She apologizes for me having to miss the class, to which I respond, "Maybe I wasn't supposed to be in it, and I was considering taking this one in addition but maybe I just need this one today."
"That's an interesting way to look at it."
When I was younger, I can recall my step father who has since passed away always informing me that "emotions are a choice, and you are the only one who can make it." Yeah, traffic sucks. Yeah I wanted to relax in a gentle yoga class. Yeah, I thought that would be what's best. But the paths of today crossed and criss-crossed in a way that my plan became futile. I could either hold tightly to my original plan, or make the adjustment.
I am guilty of wanting to plan and organize and have situations go according to them. I am good at that. If I want to continue to grow, I need to acknowledge my weak areas and embrace them, revel in them, seek their company, and allow adjustments to occur without hesitation or complaint because that just wastes time. The only concept that is not recyclable, the thing we can't get back, and the thing we can't create, yet the thing we can value. Not money, not titles, not promotions, not recognition, not popularity, but time.
No one says you have to touch your toes, but adjust.