This was supposed to be posted during the first week of January – not the last! But thanks to my procrastination, here we are. I think part of the reason I delayed in posting this is simply because I wasn’t sure how to make this idea sound positive, when there’s a certain morbidity to it. But hopefully, I will get my point across in an uplifting manner.
So our first thought to ruminate on during this one-year challenge is this: Ultimately, our bodies are temporary, and therefore, how much time do we really want to waste on worrying about our appearance? Perhaps there are other, more productive ways to spend our time, our energy, our thoughts, our money, since we will, after all, end up in the ground someday. (There’s the morbid part, but please, read on!)
Copyright: Five Seed
Now I’m not suggesting that since we’re all going to die someday that we should just let our bodies go to ruin. Not at all. Our bodies are wonderful gifts that allow us to experience this world, and the healthier we are, the better we can experience it. So of course, we should spend some time moving every day, we should try to eat healthy foods as much as possible, etc.
HOWEVER – when you stand in front of the mirror and find despair creeping in because you have spent years trying to trim your thighs or because your butt just never seems to get smaller, or… Why waste that good time when our bodies won’t actually be around that long?
I will always remember a story Anne Lamott often tells in her essays and spiritual lectures:
“When I was 38, my best friend, Pammy, died, and we went shopping about two weeks before she died, and she was in a wig and a wheelchair. I was buying a dress for this boyfriend I was trying to impress, and I bought a tighter, shorter dress than I was used to. And I said to her, ‘Do you think this makes my hips look big?’ and she said to me, so calmly, ‘Anne, you don’t have that kind of time.’”
That’s what I’m trying to get across in this seemingly macabre post. We’re not going to be here forever, so ultimately, who cares what we look like? How much we weigh? Whether or not we have cellulite? We don’t have that kind of time. Life is short. Why waste it on fretting over our appearance?
Make more time for this, less time for fretting over your weight!
Your challenge for the last week of this month is to remind yourself of this fact daily. And please leave a comment here if you have had a Lamott moment like the one described above.
Next month (just a few days away!), I promise to post the next challenge on time!
