chiropractic – Page 10 – We Only Get One Chance

LISTEN TO YOUR INNER VOICE

I cried when I read this. This spoke to me in a huge way and is a small lesson to help teach you to listen to your inner voice:

Hi Erica, I’m going to call and make an appointment for both an adjustment and massage. I could wait and tell you all this when I see you but sometimes it seems easier to put my thoughts in writing rather than to just tell it, plus you are a busy person and I don’t want to take a lot of your time. (Although I’ve been known to write books instead of messages, which could take a lot of time anyway. LOL!)

I keep trying to think of how I got so far off track! It’s just these little slips that happen without thinking it will be permanent – like family coming and just not taking time to take care of self. It’s preparing food that they like (and I like) even though it is not at all healthy. Pretty soon, a slip becomes a slide, doesn’t it? So that’s part of what happened last summer.

But then, I decided that the yoga schedule was too hard for me to work out so I joined a local gym, not intending to never go back to yoga. However, I got convinced that working with a trainer would be a helpful thing so I paid huge bucks for that for several months, which meant I couldn’t afford to go to yoga, to the chiropractor, to a massage therapist, etc., etc. The trainer also believes in eating vegan, but is strict on high protein and low, low carbs, which I tried hard to do but couldn’t stick to it. So I started doing high protein/low carbs eating meat, cheese, eggs, etc.

Then, the knee that you had been adjusting got worse and worse and I went to a surgeon who said I had a torn meniscus and he did surgery. He also said I have a significant amount of arthritis in my knee and probably in the other one. That was back in September and I’m still in pain, still stiff and am now doing physical therapy trying to get some strength and flexibility back.
I eventually could not afford the trainer anymore and began so slide off the diet and because my knee hurt so much I also quit going to the gym for the most part. Then I started eating whatever I wanted and gained some of the weight I had lost back.
So, there I was, sitting in my recliner, hurting all over, swollen up in my joints, feeling tight in my muscles, feeling dead in my stomach and OLD, OLD, OLD!!!! And I started praying about it and asking God to help me. And I began remembering how I felt when I fed my body the healthy foods – fruits, veggies, whole grains, nuts – all the things that are good (I was basically off fruits and whole grains on the low carb diet). And I remembered how limber I was, doing yoga, and chiropractic, and how great it was to have you support and encourage the yoga and the healthy diet and how easy and wonderful it was to get massages.
I think in the midst of all the voices that have swayed me one way and then another, I finally heard God’s voice – and my voice – saying “you know what is best for you! you remember what works, what is gentle, what is peaceful, what is healthy.
Sunday night I could hardly walk, hardly climb the stairs, barely even turn over in bed, I hurt so bad. Monday morning wasn’t much better and that is when I decided to make a change NOW! The yoga schedule will be the priority and my work schedule will be worked around it.
I will be going to PT for a while, but I want to come back to Cafe of Life and get back on the journey to health and wholeness. I have to stop allowing myself to get pulled off the journey and to stay focused!
I will be calling this afternoon and trying to get in next week. But I just wanted to tell you where I am in all this. I never intended on stopping my treatment there. It just little by little, day by day, time went by and pretty soon, I almost forgot.
As the yoga instructor says “BEGIN AGAIN.” I went back, by the way, on Monday evening. There was so much I could not do with my stiff knee but I did a lot and I felt more limber and not as tight and did not have as much pain Tuesday morning. The yoga instructor reminded me “Be gentle with yourself, but be persistent.” Good advise for someone who gives up rather easily, isn’t it?
I miss you and your gentle smile. I will be glad to see you and hope you haven’t given up entirely on me! I’m hoping to get this right this time.
Have a blessed Easter. I will see you next week, I hope.

MY RESPONSE:

Thank you so much for that email. I really appreciate you giving me all the details in your update because all of that stuff is important for me to know.

Life is a game of slipping and checking and BEGINNING AGAIN is always an option.

I never give up on anyone. Instead, I hold a space for healing for people whether you are at the Café of LIFE or on a journey that takes you from here. Either way, you will always be welcome here no matter how long it has been since your last visit. I realize that life takes twists and turns as mine does exactly the same. Healing comes from within and it is best to find something on the inside to anchor to so you can stay consistent, which sounds like you may have found that. Being gentle and persistent is how we progress, but take bite size pieces so you keep yourself having small successes that lead to bigger ones and then celebrate those.

There is a lot of “should’s” that can fall on us during a day and make us feel like we are failing in one area or another. Just do your best every single day and know that is all anyone can ever ask.

And give yourself a break, drink your water, find time to stroll and enjoy your days, make good food and exercise choices and believe in your body’s ability to heal. Your thoughts are powerful so make sure to use them in your favor.

Looking forward to seeing you…

Erica

Health & Happiness,

Dr. Erica Peabody

Every time I re-read this, the tears well up because I know there are so many people that have slipped and are struggling. Bless this particular person who shared her words so eloquently and is allowing me to tell her story.

Do you have a little voice in your head that guides you when you are lost? Does it talk to you in a positive way or negative way? Do you listen to your inner voice? It may be the most powerful guidance system you have for your life. There is so much technology, so many opinions, so many things trying to influence and steer you in this direction or that direction. Take some time to be quiet and listen to that inner voice…it is always right. Once you start to listen, and if you find yourself way off course…just BEGIN AGAIN.

HAPPY

This past weekend I was up north and spent my days snowboarding at Crystal Mountain. There were many, many moments during the days that I thought to myself “I am happy”. I then asked the question “What makes me happy?” and “What about everyone else?”.

I live a blessed life and I have many things that add to my happiness. In those moments while I was out on my snowboard, my happiness was magnified by the fact that I had a warm bed to wake up in, I prepared and ate a great breakfast that fueled my body for my day, I had time to play in the snow, the sun was shining, I was enjoying great conversation with a friend, I was able to let loose and fly down the hill on my snowboard and I was up north which is a change of day to day scenery.

I thought to myself “I really wish everyone that I know could be out here having as much fun as I was having.” That thought was soon nixed by the fact that the slopes would be too crowded if EVERYONE I knew was out there, but it transformed to “I really wish everyone that I know could be doing something that would add to their happiness as much as snowboarding in the sunshine adds to mine.” Yes, that is a much more rational thought.

When I mention the thought of being happy, I am also reminded of a man that has been coming in to get adjusted at the Cafe of LIFE for years and never, ever gets excited about anything; Monday is not exciting, Tuesday is not exciting, Wednesday is not exciting, Thursday is not exciting, Friday is not exciting, the weekend is not exciting, literally nothing is ever exciting and I wonder about his internal happiness. My thought is…WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!?!

Last night I attended a prayer service for an icon of a man who lost his life way too young. This man was truly a happy man and he did his very best to show others a little bit about being happy ever chance he got in hopes he could help them smile a little more on the inside. As I listened to his children speak about him, I was reminded of my own mortality and that we are never guaranteed a tomorrow and that life is really short, often shorter than we anticipate…so figure out what makes you happy and go do that!

Be HAPPY! There is absolutely no time like the present. If not today, then WHEN?!?! There isn’t anyone who is going to make you happy, you have to go out and make that happen for yourself. Let’s not wait one more day. Get out there!!!

What makes you happy? How do you add happy stuff to your day? Share in the comments below, you may end up inspiring someone with your ideas or the things you do.

THANK YOU

I need to say THANK YOU to all of you. I have made one HUGE transition since the beginning of this year and it is making a world of difference. I finally changed our afternoon hours at the Cafe of LIFE!

Over the past few months, we had numerous requests for our

afternoon hours to begin at 3pm instead of 3:30pm. In combination with that, we were finding that our 6-6:30pm time slot has been quiet and since the time change this past fall, it really felt like we were working super late into the night with how dark it is. So after a couple years of deliberation (this one I have been considering for quite some time) we have made the switch.

And I AM THRILLED!!! I have spent the past 8 years serving others and at times, have made sacrifices in my own life in order to do so. Getting out at 6:30 Monday through Thursday would limit me. Seems so many events, classes, concerts and such that I wanted to attend would start at 7 and be close to an hour away from Fenton (everything seems an hour away from Fenton for some reason). I would have to decline offer after offer over the years. There were classes at the gym that I never could make due to my schedule. Leaving at 6:30 meant that I could pretty much do one thing and then the night would be over and its time for bed.

Some of you may be thinking…its a mere 30 minutes she is talking about here. What is the big deal?

There is a lot that can be done in 30 minutes…a good cardio workout, make a delicious dinner, drive half way to Detroit, drive half way to the Wharton Center, have a meaningful conversation, make a phone call to catch up with a friend, run a 5K, bike one loop around Kensington, drive to Pine Knob Amphitheater, eat dinner at a restaurant, have a glass of wine, drink a glass of champagne, make a few runs on my snowboard at Mt. Holly, sleep…there is a LOT one can do in 30 minutes!

Then multiply that by 4 (days a week that I get out a half hour early) and then multiply that by 50 weeks of work in a year and that turns into 6,000 extra minutes in the evening per year…and there is a WHOLE LOT one can do in 6,000 minutes!!! You get my point. And it is 6,000 minutes more for me and 6,000 minutes more for Angie who, mind you, has a little one to tend to in the evenings.

So I am saying THANK YOU because i haven’t heard one negative comment about us shifting our hours. Thank you for being so understanding. Thank you for allowing me to take back a little portion of my life. Over the past 6 working days, I have had tremendous guilt for leaving a half hour early but I recognize that is all self manifested guilt and that not one person is making me feel that way besides myself. It may take me the next 8 years before I am used to leaving at 6…but I am looking forward to making the most of those 48,000 extra minutes while I am doing it. Thank you!

GIVE THEM FOOD

Every year at Halloween, I have an internal debate with myself about giving out a bunch of candy. I used to remedy this debate by handing out caramel apples however this year, with the apple crop damage in this state, we were unable to do that. So we decided to do an experiment this time around…and the results were OUTSTANDING!!!

When I went to the store to shop for our trick-or-treaters, I felt a little like a scrooge buying apples, clementines and almonds. I added M&Ms in the mix and so our bowl of treats had quite a variety.

I put about a quarter of the bag of snack size M&Ms in and filled the rest up with the real food; the apples, clementines and almonds. We also gave out glow-in-the-dark bracelets to help them stay safe that evening and a book mark about health.

When the children came in, Angie would ask them to pick something from each bucket (bracelets in one, bookmarks in another, and the food/candy in the last). When they got the bucket with the food/candy, a majority, and when I say the word majority I mean close to 90%, chose FOOD!!! They would say things like “THEY HAVE ALMONDS!!!!”, “APPLES ARE MY FAVORITE!!” or on their way out the door, we could hear them declare “I ABSOLUTELY LOVE CLEMENTINES!!!!”.

It was amazing to see their reaction to what we were serving because I wasn’t sure which way it was going to go. In fact, when I was in the store getting supplies, I even said to the check-out person at Trader Joe’s “I may end up being one of those ‘dreaded’ places for Halloween because I am not giving out much candy, but I am going to give it a try anyway.”

So the outcome of this experiment is GIVE THEM FOOD!!! Kids love food! Real food! Things that grow on trees and in the ground. They loved our treats and were absolutely thrilled to have the options. Why do you think that is? I attribute it to the possibility that kids innately know what is good for them. I wouldn’t say a blanket statement “kids would choose real food over candy any day”, but how about giving them some healthy options on a regular basis. How about rewarding them with a baked apple? …or dried banana chips? …or some trail mix? These choices on a regular basis will make a world of difference in their health in the long run.

IF I CAN, YOU CAN!

I was privileged to be able to start my week listening to a very inspirational man. You may be familiar with Al Serra Auto Plaza in Grand Blanc, but you may not be as familiar with the quality of leadership that runs that place. One of them happens to be my step-dad and the culture that has been created is like no other car company around. Often, for their morning sales meeting, they are thinking outside the box of what you would expect a car sales meeting to be and bringing in some really inspirational people.

This past Monday I had the opportunity to listen to a guy with an incredibly inspirational story. Clay Dyer has no legs and no left arm. On his right side he has a small portion of an arm that he uses for everything. He was born this way. When he was a young boy, he developed a passion for fishing and told the story of how he got his first high quality fishing pole. He has a great sense of humor when he tells the story of how at 12 years old he was hounding his father to buy him a $250 fishing rod. His dad thought it was an outrageous price for a fishing pole when Clay chimes in “Well Dad, imagine how much money you have saved over these past 12 years not having to buy me shoes!” …and a professional bass fisherman was born.

His physical limitations are numerous however while listening to him, you can tell he lives in a heart-centered space and trusts the world around him. He lives by the motto “If I can, you can!” and loves to share that message with people all over. At one point he discussed what his normal daily routine consists of. By the end of the sales meeting, it was brought up that if you didn’t have the visual of what Clay looked like and you could only hear his voice, you would never have known he had any physical limitations…because in his mind, he has no limits. Because he sees himself and his life and experiences as such a blessing, he is able to do just about anything he wants to…including 50 push-ups which he did for us while on stage!

I will sometimes catch myself putting unnecessary limits on myself and my life. I think this is maybe a natural part of being human. We are born limitless and then through the years, and for a number of different reasons, we start putting up a box around what we can and cannot do. I think it is interesting, and a good example, that at one point a limit on how fast a human can run one mile. It used to be thought “insurmountable” to run one mile in less than 4 minutes and for decades this limit was true…until someone did it and then a number of people were able to accomplish the same task shortly thereafter.

Since you couldn’t attend the meeting on Monday, I found this great YouTube clip about Clay Dyer so you can experience a little bit of his story. Click HERE to watch…it is worth your 10 minutes, I promise.

“If I can, you can!” is Clay Dyer’s message and coming from him, it is a powerful. When you are in a room listening to all that he has accomplished and what his goals and dreams are in life to still accomplish yet, it raises our own limits a little bit…it breaks us out of the box we have put ourselves in. It gives us permission to live our lives a little bit louder! Now, go and be AWESOME!!!

CATCHING THE SUNRISE

7am my alarm goes off. I hit snooze and and take 1 minute to check my email while my brain wakes up. I have laid my workout clothes out so I can literally just step into them when I stand up. The night before, I have packed my bag with work clothes for the day. I attempt to wrangle my hair into some sort of presentable fashion, throw on my shoes and a warmer layer and head downstairs. I steer clear of caffeine as I get tons of energy from eating real food (fruits, vegetables, nuts, etc). I usually cut up an apple, throw some raw almonds and a Lara bar in a container, grab my water and put it all in my Jeep. I run back inside to make sure the dog gets a chance to do his business, get him some food and water and head out the door. I jump into my car, put it in reverse and back out of my garage, closing the garage door behind me. This entire process takes roughly 8 minutes…and I have become very aware that if it happens any other way, it’s not happening at all. It sounds strict and regimented but how many excuses do you have for not going to the gym in the morning? I have them too.

So I usually have Sirius XM Coffee House on the radio that slowly eases me into the day. I drive down my road, head on US-23 north and I am off. On the highway, the speed of my Jeep picks up as well as the pace of life. I get off just a few exits from where I got on, take a right and it is the most magnificent part of the morning…the SUNRISE!!! I am new to this working-out-in-the-morning thing (I don’t go into work until 10am so it just makes good sense, however it took me 7 solid years to figure it out)…so I am new to meeting the sunrise on a regular basis. I began my working-out-in-the-morning adventure at the end of spring and its as already light by my 7am alarm. Because I would prefer to be outside for workouts (when it is warm enough outside that is where you will find me) it has only been about 3 weeks since I started back at the gym and hence driving this route.

After that right turn, my path to the gym takes me directly towards the sunrise for half a mile, a jaunt north for 1 mile and then about 5 miles into the sunrise…it has become a really special part of the day. It seems as though I have only gone to the gym on mornings without rain. There has always been a few clouds in the sky, but I am grateful for those clouds because it gives shape, texture and dimension to this beautiful canvas spread out in front of me. I love the first sun rays for their reddish-pinkish tones. It illuminates the sky in a very soft and friendly way. In the past few weeks the trees that line my route are also beautiful as they approach peak color season. And as you can see from the picture, whatever is happening in the sky, is also reflected off the hood of my Jeep.

The other beautiful part of this time of the morning is knowing that there is an entire day ahead and though I have to fit within parameters with time, scheduling and obligations (like work), I get to choose what kind of day I want to have. I get to pick the message I want to send to the world that day. I get to choose who I am going to hang out with, what I am going to eat, how I am going to approach people and what kind of attitude I am going to meet the day with. Imagine being greeted by a beautiful sunrise that seems to be inviting me to have a great day, then going to move my body (which includes swimming and you all know how I feel about swimming I LOVE SWIMMING ) getting ready for work interacting with other people and heading in to serve “The Exceptional Chiropractic Experience” at the Cafe of LIFE. I will argue with you until I am blue in the face…life doesn’t get better than that.

I am blessed beyond measure and if you are reading this, I count you as one of my blessings. I am grateful for everything that is this life and it brings me so much joy to share with people. I hear from so many of my readers in private messages over email, Facebook, text message and in person…however I want to encourage you to take one simple action step here…I want to know how you start your days? How do you ensure you are off on the best foot to maximize the potential of your day? How do you begin? Share in the comments below…you never know how far reaching your words will travel. Maybe you will inspire others with your morning ritual. Or maybe you are like me and really enjoy catching the sunrise.

“OK”, “EH”, “NOT BAD”

I get to serve a lot of people at my chiropractic office and many of them I have seen for many, many years. This is not everyone, but this is a taste of how some of the conversations begin…

Me: “How are you?” Them: “Eh…”

Me: “How has your week started?” Them: “It’s ok.”

Me: “Has you had a good day?” Them: “Eh…”

Me: “Has your week started well?” Them: “Not bad.”

Me: “What are your plans for this beautiful evening?” Them: “Not sure.”

I am by no means saying that these are not perfectly acceptable answers to my rather regular questions, it is absolutely ok to say whatever you feel like. The reason I am bringing this up is because some of these people say the same things over and over for YEARS! When I say that, I really mean they have been un-excited about life for as many years as I have known them. It almost

seems like they live Monday through Friday just to get to the weekend. Then when I ask them how their weekend went, they say “Eh, it was ok.” REALLY?!?!?!?! WHAT GIVES???

LIFE IS LIFE. Sometimes there isn’t anything real “exciting” going on, no cool vacation to look forward to, didn’t win the lottery recently, no brand new home to move into, still driving the same old car, no crazy shopping spree to go on…nothing exciting at all. Ever thought for a moment that what happens on a regular daily basis is ENOUGH to get excited about?

Life is absolutely filled to the brim with mundane, routine stuff. As human beings we have to get up in the morning, it is probably a really good idea to eat breakfast and take a shower and most will be get ready for work (either inside the home or outside the home) or school. We will then put ourselves in a vehicle of some sort and transport ourselves somewhere where we will spend the next 8-12 hours (1/3-1/2) of our days doing something to earn a living. During that time we will probably take a break for lunch, maybe find a lunch buddy to chat with and then go back to work or school (even if you are at home raising a family, there is probably a routine you fall into). We will more than likely jump back in a vehicle of some sort and drive ourselves back to the place where we started our day, find a little more food, maybe get some sort of exercise in, brush our teeth and lay down for the night to rest only to get up and do the same thing all over again the next day…and the next day…and the next day. Ugh, just writing that sounds like a drag.

But...LIFE IS LIFE!! What if you started your day with the idea that “gosh it is really good to wake up on the top side of the grass!“? What if that is the attitude you began the day with…an ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE for even getting another day to live? What happens if you sat a few extra seconds and decided to actually TASTE and EXPERIENCE your breakfast? What textures are there? What tastes are happening in my mouth? It is so neat that I can eat a bowl of cereal and it becomes muscles, tissues, organs and glands! Then when you are in the shower…how about really feeling and experiencing what it takes to clean your body. How does the water feel? What smells are present? Or just be grateful to have clean, fresh, warm water to bathe in everyday!

If you let it, the drive to work will take on a life of its own…so many things to look at inside and outside of the vehicle. This time of year the leaves are changing and it is beautiful! And suddenly we are grateful for the stop lights and stop signs because they make us pause and have a moment before moving forward and that can become a moment to give thanks for the good ‘ol car that you get to drive everyday. Once at work, instead of dreading all the filing you have to do, the emails you have to return or the annoying people you have to deal with…take a glance out to what is the big picture of what you are doing on a daly basis. Can you count the number of lives you have effected just because you do the work you do? How are you serving others?

The drive home, exercise, stopping in for your chiropractic adjustment, getting dinner, spending some time with your family and then hitting the sack for another night of rest to be able to recharge to do it all again tomorrow…they all take on a new meaning if we become a little more present and show just a smidgen more enthusiasm while doing them. When you are asked “how was your day?” after you spent a day like that, you will actually want to say “IT WAS GREAT! For what it was, it really was great!” Now that doesn’t mean that other people’s day wasn’t 100 times more fun than yours, according to your perception…but in the grand scheme of things, their day doesn’t matter and there is absolutely no reason to try to compare your day to someone else’s day. It is YOUR LIFE and this LIFE full of mundane-ness is going REALLY FREAKIN’ QUICKLY!!! We are here to do this one time and I cannot figure out one good reason to not get excited about the mundane-ness and routine-full-ness…because 90% of what we do on a daily basis is exactly that.

So think about the concept of SUPER EXCITING, ABSOLUTELY AMAZING, REALLY FUN, AWESOME, BREATH-TAKING, PULSE INCREASING, HAIR RAISING, TERRIFICALLY FANTASTIC mundane-ness. It exists. Trust me, I know. The key to it, its a conscious choice you get to make Enjoy yourself, every day of your life…and consider this a triple-dog dare to you to have some fun going through your routine tomorrow…and then let me know how it goes. If you are able to make a small shift, you will notice something about life…that it is REALLY, REALLY GOOD. I would love to hear your stories. 🙂

EARTH DAY CLEANUP

This is a quick link to a short write-up about our 3RD ANNUAL EARTH DAY CLEANUP. Come join us on Saturday April 21st 9a-noon. We will provide bags and gloves and a take home gift for all those who volunteer some of their time to our CLEANUP efforts.

http://www.mlive.com/news/flint/index.ssf/2012/04/earth_day_cleanup_scheduled_in.html

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Cafe of LIFE by phone at (810)629-6023 or email erica@cafeoflifefenton.com. We hope to see you on APRIL 21st for our EARTH DAY CLEANUP!!!

"YOU GET WHAT YOU NEED"

There is a song that runs through my mind lately, mostly because I have heard it so much on my Rusted Root Pandora Station (a highly recommended station, by the way), but also because after I hear it, my mind ponders the message for quite some time. It goes something like this…

“You can’t always get what you want.
You can’t always get what you want.
You can’t always get what you want.
But if you try sometime…you just might find…
YOU GET WHAT YOU NEED!”

I have had some very interesting life lessons over the past years, as I am sure we all have. I have a strong conviction that although we are presented with most things t

Chiropractor Fenton Michigan - Dr Erica Peabody - You get what you need

hat are WAY outside our control, by the use of gratitude and a strong focus on what we want, we are powerful creators of our lives and experiences. I also realize that sometimes the things that we think we want in our lives or experiences that we want to have happen, are very limiting in the grand scheme of things. There is a much bigger picture to this life than what we can actually see and grasp with our thoughts.

Have you ever sat down and wrote out goals? made a “to do” list? Have you ever thought about what you would like to have happen in 5 years? 10 years? Have you ever quieted down your life enough and heard things come from inside that sounded like “I want a new job.” “I want to make more money.” “I want to be in a relationship.” “I want to be in a different relationship.” “I want a new house.” “I want a new car.” “I want to win the Mega-Millions.” Does any of that sound familiar?

What LIFE has taught me is that what we call our “wants” are very limiting. If ALL and ONLY our wants came to fruition, we would live a small life. Now, when I say small, I don’t mean that in a negative way, more the idea that it would be limiting, like looking over a lake and seeing that as the only possibility of a large body of water without having any concept of the ocean.

Having a direction and steering life with GRATITUDE can open up limitless possibilities. Our “wants” are one thing…but what happens if you don’t get what you “want”? I have a strong faith in the concept that LIFE sends the perfect people, things and experiences to us in the perfect timing in order for us to maximize our potential for learning, growth and evolution. In the moment, it may be very difficult to see the perfection…but most of you have probably experienced that in retrospect it was exactly what you needed. So in other words it is true that…”YOU CAN”T ALWAYS GET WHAT YOU…but you just might find YOU GET WHAT YOU NEED!” Be open to the amazing twists and turns of LIFE, take some risks and get outside of your box of “wants”…we only get one chance.

I AM AMAZED EVERYTIME!

I have done my fair share of traveling in my life and have spent a lot of time on planes since I moved home in 2004. I always try to get a window seat because I love seeing what there is to see while we sit and wait for the plane to take off. I am also the one with my nose glued to the glass during portions of the flight and of course the landing. More often than not, prior to take-off I find myself in a daze watching as these huge planes are filled with people and luggage. I am amazed the logistical phenomenon that is our airline systems…I mean really, how on Earth do they get all those bags to the right spots?!?! I marvel in the simple fact that something that big could fly through the air and carry people comfortably from one location to some place completely different. I know our civilization has been flying for years and years, and I myself have taken numerous flights…but I am so fascinated by the concept of flight. Loading up in Detroit in the middle of winter and arriving in Costa Rica, in a totally different country, climate and culture…that is totally awesome!

With how intense (in a good way) my life is at home, coupled with my ability to completely relax on vacation, flying somewhere sometimes feels like getting on a time machine. The last 2 weeks of March was a very intensely stressful time for me. In the middle of the 2 weeks, it just so happened that I had a trip to Colorado planned. I got to a boiling point and since my trip to Colorado was mostly for fun, I almost backed out of going. After asking a bunch of questions and weighing a few things, I decided to go…and what perfect timing! I left the crazy chaos going on here and as soon as I sat down on the plane, it all melted away. In a short 2.5 hour plane ride, I was half way across the country, with great friends, beautiful sunshine and peace of mind to enjoy the weekend. It truly is amazing to “sit in a chair in the air” and end up thousands of miles away. The following link is one of my favorites…half way through is when he starts his discussion about flight and he hits the nail on the head…I laugh so hard every time I watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r1CZTLk-Gk&feature=list_related&playnext=1&list=AL94UKMTqg-9BlsLTYIGJEOA-5oL2pRdka

His whole concept of “Everything is Amazing and Nobody is Happy” is so right on. Take a look around and find a little something to be amazed by and grateful for. So many of the thigns around you are absolutely amazing…even the simple fact that I can write this blog sitting at my desk and my Grandmother can read it from her home in Florida…and you can read it from wherever you are!! This LIFE truly is AMAZING!!! …and we only get one chance.