Earlier this week, I attended an early morning Tabata class at our local YMCA. Have you ever taken Tabata? It's DEATH!! Basically you do an exercise for 20 seconds and then have 10 seconds off. You repeat the same exercise for 8 rounds, then you rest for 30 seconds to 1 minute and then do the whole thing again with a new exercise. I hadn't done it in a while so I was a little nervous. But all my running paid off and I didn't feel as out of shape as I thought I would, but I was definitely sore the next few days.
In the exercise room where the class is held are huge mirrors that line 3 walls. There is no getting away from yourself as you wiggle and jiggle, it's all right there front and center. There are days I don't mind it and days I just try and not look too hard at myself. It is good for helping you with keeping proper form, thus helping you prevent injury.
With having had 4 kids, 2 miscarriages, and just getting older in general, everything is not so high and tight as it used to be or how I may ideally like it to be. I'm not the lightest I've ever been and I'm also not the heaviest. But guess what, I'm the happiest I've been in a long time.
A few hours after I got home from class that day, I was overcome with the most profound gratefulness for my body and how amazing it is. For the first time in a long time I really loved my body. It moves, it's strong, it serves, it feels, it allows my spirit to enjoy and participate in so many things that would be impossible without it.
Perhaps this insight is a gift of age. Age does that to us. It helps us sift out all the things we once thought were important for the things that really are important.
Now I'm not saying that you should totally not care about what you look like or completely let yourself go because part of caring for your body is what allows you to experience and do all the things you need to. You just don't need to be a supermodel for your body to be useful and attractive.
When kidlet #1 was just under a year old, my husband and I embarked on a trip we still talk about to this day. With baby in tow, we boarded a plane to Paris for a 10 day trip with some good friends who had family that lived in France. It was an amazing trip which I will expound upon at some future date. One of the many things we did while there was go to the Louvre and see the Mona Lisa. I don't know if anyone else is like me, but I do not find Ms. Lisa Gherardini to be a stick nor may I say very attractive. But guess what, she is one of the most looked at faces in the world! The worth of her portrait transcends what mortal imperfections she may have possessed. Her beauty has mesmerized humanity for centuries. Leonardo was her God. He created a masterpiece so precise and exquisite for his time that even today it still confounds the greatest of artists.
We are each a lot like the Mona Lisa. We may not hang in a marbled hall or be admiringly gazed at by millions a year, but we are each a masterpiece. We each are molded and sculpted just as we should be. Just as the Artist of our souls and bodies intended. What a gift and a privilege. What an example of His love for us. I hope we all remember that, as hard as it may be at times, and use our bodies for what He intends for us to do with them. Because unlike a stationary portrait, we can be a living one and bless countless among us.
Happy Weekend Everyone! Make it AMAZING!!
Go HERE to see one of the most beautiful paintings I have ever seen. It took my breath away when I saw it in this months issue of our church's monthly magazine. I will be saving my pennies for a print to hang in my home.
**************************************************************************************
*Did you know the Mona Lisa was a commissioned portrait by a husband of his wife to celebrate the completion of the couple's home. Maybe I should tell Greg he should commission a large portrait of me when our new house is complete. Who would come see it?
**I know I said I'd be sharing the basement floor choice today, but I like to share things a bit deeper on Fridays. Come back Monday!
A good post, Megs. I always wished my body reflected more of the "girl who works out 6 days/week," as opposed to the "girl who eats a little too much chocolate chips at times." :) But my body is pretty okay, I guess. :)
ReplyDelete