When Things Fall Apart

I just started reading Pema Chodron's book, "When Things Fall Apart" that was graciously passed down by a friend last night. So much of what I'm reading sounds familiar. I've been here or there before. I even have a tattoo of rebirth on my belly. I've gone through several major transformational periods in my life. After making it through each death and rebirth phase of my ideas of who I thought or I was what I thought I knew, I always end up finding someone I like better.

I often meet people when they are entering, in the middle of or coming out of a major transformational phase in their lives. It could be a chronic illness, a soon to be empty nest, menopause, a career change, divorce, a birth of a child, depression or anxiety that has lead to the body falling apart. But all of these major life events have something in common. We have the choice to adapt or we run the risk of shifting into autopilot, losing our mojo and our passions and living a life that doesn't allow us to experience the depth of being human. And when we disconnect from ourselves we disconnect from others.

I learn so much from being around people who are in the middle of the muck of a cycle. It's a gift to be around people who allow themselves to be vulnerable with me there. It's so much easier to have compassion for other people than it is to have compassion for our own flaws isn't it. At least it is for me.

Here's a little clip of Pema Chodron talking about acceptance of ourselves.



So many people come into the studio for the first time feeling vulnerable or shamed by weight gain or by not having taken care of themselves. I'm always amazed by the universal ability for people to be extremely hard on themselves. If you're not one of those people, I'm sure you've either done an immense amount of work or you haven't been truly humbled yet.

Getting back into exercise after a long hiatus takes a lot of courage. We know it's not an easy path to lose weight, get strong and make regular exercise a habit. It can be a little scary going back into a gym after being away for a long time.

Here's a little excerpt from "When Things Fall Apart". I am continually amazed at the courage it takes for people to step into Urbanfitt for the first time and am so grateful they chose to get back at it or to even start for the first time in my studio.

"So the next time you encounter fear, consider yourself lucky. This is where courage comes in. Usually we think that brave people have no fear. The truth is that they are intimate with fear. When I was first married my husband said I was one of the bravest people he knew. When I asked him why, he said because I was a complete coward but went ahead of did things anyhow."