Everything is Awesome!

You guys! Have you ever thought you couldn’t do something because you were “too tired” or “weren’t up to it”, only to later realize that if you simply change your approach or motivation, you had more desire in your pinkie finger than could ever be contained by the task you were dreading? I had one of those moments this morning! After a rough night of sleep loss, i awoke dreading my morning run. “I don’t have the energy, it’s only for the exercise and I’m not sure it’s even a good idea to push myself, today…”, i said. Begrudgingly, I laced up my shoes anyway, promising myself it would only be a light, short jog. Little did I know that i simply wasn’t tuned into my own correct frequency because it had little to do with “running”. The secret is, i shouldn’t have been focused on a “run” at all, i should’ve been focused on exercising my own happiness. I stepped outside and the sunlight hit me as i cranked up my favorite tune that always reminds me of my friends and how great our friendships make me feel. In my heart, I felt gratitude for my friendships, how much I missed my friends and how much I was looking forward to being with them again. For example, my friend Dave and I enjoy creating improv sketch jokes out of observing almost any social behavior or endlessly exploring deep philosophical questions of the universe until we wonder if we’re even making sense to ourselves or each other, haha! We can also talk to each other about anything and always support each other! As I felt into this emotion and began my run, all the elements of my environment suddenly began to magnify each other: the fresh open air, the sunlight everywhere and a happy tune stimulating my heart to embody everything about my friendships that fuels me to get up every morning and celebrate our connection. Who doesn’t want to RUN through their heart, experiencing all the ways in which their best friends make them feel and how you can’t imagine your life without them? Make no mistake, I was still physically tired but suddenly, this had nothing to do with physical running or stamina anymore. I wasn’t “exercising” anymore, i was embodying my heart with movement. It felt more like dancing. I was off to the races. With a big, dumb grin on my face from ear to ear, i was literally running through the streets with the inner monologue of my heart shouting to my friends, “You make me feel amazing! Wonderful! Incredible! Awesome! Friendships like this are all i need in life!”

Opening our hearts to our friends means each of our relationships is special and unique to us, allowing for so much creativity and authenticity in connecting with others...it’s no wonder they make us feel amazing and fuel us! Who are you going to show up as? What vulnerabilities are you going to offer? What shared values will you discover? I felt so open to the possibilities and freedoms available when sharing and connecting with my friends, my heart just wanted to burst! I wanted to embrace the day and the community around me in a big hug! I didn’t feel “quarantined” at all, I felt the opposite. I felt FREE. OPEN-HEARTED. By simply opening my heart, I felt like I was “outside” simply by putting myself and my vulnerability “out there”.

In the end, having the “energy” to exercise was more about tapping into the willingness and motivation of what makes me happy and celebrating that with movement. And boy, did I ever. This quarantine doesn’t have to limit how we imagine the meaning-making of our lives unfolding while “outside” or in community with others. We are already in community and we can feel “outside” just by being open in our hearts, being vulnerable, and sharing ourselves from anywhere to anyone, even at a distance… So take a vacation from quarantine, get “out there” and take a walking tour or a run through your heart’s desire to be vulnerable and connect with everyone you pass by! (6 feet safely away, ha!)