Friday, September 27, 2013
Unarmed and Fabulous
Unarmed and Fabulous
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| Photo by: Newtown grafitti |
When Barbie Thomas, at the tender age of two, lost both arms after mistakenly grabbing the wires of a transformer near her Texas home 35 years ago, her mother decided that day that neither of them would ever fold, give up, or take the easy way out of any situation.
"I was not allowed to be negative and say I can't do something," Thomas told Good Morning America last week.* "I was always taught to focus on what I can do, not what I can't do."
That advice may sound oversimplified. Unattainable. Borderline delusional. Pollyanna-ish. You may say to yourself, "Who lives like that? Who can sustain such an attitude over the course of one's lifetime?"
But there's a difference between perpetually and foolishly wearing rose-colored glasses, versus making a reasoned choice to acknowledge the positive side of any situation and pursuing it.
The choice always exists. The decision always can be made to go positive or negative. Once you realize which way you are "wired" subconsciously, you can then consciously make the selection toward the positive, thereby placing your life immediately on the path toward greater health, balance, and peace.
It may not be the easiest process in the world, but it absolutely is the most rewarding. Barbie Thomas would agree.
This real-life Venus de Milo, this mother of two teenage sons, contends at the national level as a fitness competitor - a form of athletic dance and conditioning that falls somewhere between pure bodybuilding and bikini pageants. What's more, she has placed in the top five nationally, and recently earned the first-ever Inspiration Award from the National Physique Committee.
"We all have our own stuff to deal with," she said. "Mine are just more visible. I survived because God saw the bigger picture and had plans for me."
Be Well,
Friday, September 20, 2013
Everything is Okay
Everything is Okay
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| Photo by: Jonathan Lin |
The feeling sneaks up on me occasionally, and I don't particularly enjoy it.
I'll be in the middle of conducting a class with a group of participants, doing what I've become so familiar doing, when a wave of thoughts jolts across my mind.
"Can I keep this going? Can I sustain this level of performance? Can I ensure that everyone here, all of these people counting on me, will receive something of power and value?"
It's normal, even healthy, to pose questions like these to oneself every now and again. It keeps you honest and accountable. It spurs renewed energy and effort. It keeps you sharp, and away from the lazy, wasteful pitfall of routine and rote.
Yet when these thoughts scamper through my consciousness, normal as they might be, they still bother me, even if only a little. That is, until I remember a greater truth.
Everything is okay.
Everyone is okay.
I'm okay, and so is the way in which I go about my business of interacting with clients.
And why? Because every person is built to succeed. Every person has a champion inside. Those who understand and appreciate this fact - and who operate from a platform of positive, accepting, love-based relationships with others - have nothing to fear. Ever.
So respect those moments of self-questioning and use them to bring yourself even higher. But never forget that you are - just the same as I am, and everyone else is - a champion inside.
Built by love. Built to succeed.
Be Well,
Eric Guy
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