Friday, September 07, 2007

Turning The Corner

The long hot summer’s coming to a close, and like clockwork, I’ve seen quite a few people back in the gym, picking up where they left off at the start of the summer. Much of their time has been spent taking care of kids, driving back and forth to practices and attending games.

Now that the kids are back in school, they’ve got time to get back at it. Several told me they just couldn’t take it anymore, and had to make a change. Some said “it was just time.”

One said that his heart would race just going up the stairs and he was tired of feeling that way. With a family history of heart disease and diabetes, he felt he couldn’t wait any longer. It was this, or a heart attack. He’s probably right.

Others found the weight they lost last spring. They weren’t really looking for it but it showed up anyway. Now they’re back to deal with it. I love the intensity on their faces when they talk about it. I love the fact they show up, even more.

One woman was here 5 days this week. That’s the ticket. That’s going to get it done. And that guy that was sick and tired of being sick and tired? I think I saw him 7 or 8 times this week. Doing what I suggested. And he feels better too. He said it was the first time in a long time that he felt good.

I think part of it is that it feels good knowing you’re doing something good. It’s kind of like giving at church or to someone who happens to need a little help. When you can do it, it just feels good. It’s great motivation and can help you turn the corner.

Someone else I love has turned a corner, too. After losing her mother last spring, she’s been kind of swimming in a fog. Feeling like not doing anything; not even wanting to be around people.

She’d been a 24-7 caregiver for her mom for 10 years in our home. It was understandable, amazing really. It takes time to deal with any loss like that, much less when someone is that close for all those years.

Her garden had overgrown and was way out of control. Her daily walking regimen was gone. For six months, life was about hanging on, for a season, trying to make sense of things. She told me she was also dealing with the shame of knowing things were out of control, and not doing anything about it.

But the season finally turned, as they all will, if we’ll let them. She got disgusted with the garden and last week spent four mega-days weeding, pushing wheelbarrows, re-mulching, and doing other gardening things. Even the cats were keeping their heads down. Now she’s on the warpath with weeds anywhere else on the property.

And then she asked if I minded if she got up early and started walking. Like I’m going to say no? Of course it’s fine, and no, it won’t bother me. I’m ecstatic. I’m getting my wife back. And more importantly, she’s getting herself back. Finding what I’m coming to call “a new normal.”

That’s what we all need to do. Get ourselves back. Get our bodies back. Find a new way of dealing with things. I keep thinking about that Zig Ziglar statement, “If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always got.” And how it’s insanity to keep doing the same thing expecting a different result (Albert Einstein).

Something’s got to change to make it better. Maybe it’s giving something up. Or getting back up. Picking up where you left off, or trying something new. What do you need to do this season? Is it your time yet? Why not find out? Just…start something. Start. Just…start.