Monday, September 26, 2016

An Invitation from the Universe

I will admit that I am that friend who says yes to everything I can. With that spirit I have been blessed with so much.

A college classmate encouraged me to apply for a science internship in Colorado and I said yes. (At that point, I had only ever lived in New York and had not thought about where life could take me.)

Kiara asked me to sign up for CorePower Yoga teacher training and I said yes. (At that point in life, I had never considered the difference between doing yoga and teaching yoga.)

Genie asked me to run the New York City Marathon and fundraise for charity and I said yes. (At that point in life, I had no idea what training for anything meant.)

Melissa asked me to do a half Ironman triathlon in Florida for her 30th birthday and I said yes. (At that point in life, I did not realize how much people dedicate their lives to things that are important to them.)

Why do I do some things? Honestly, many times I do things simply because I can. Along the way I have discovered that we can all do more than we think we can. I am grateful that I can...and do. And I never regret that I did!

Each time I find myself in the position to do something different and I am able to say yes, it just feels good inside. It lights me up to do things for reasons beyond my own will. I am happy that the universe keeps me guessing, always presenting different options and infinite outcomes. To me, saying yes to something different feels like a breath of fresh air.

With the idea of acceptance in mind, I listened to Shonda Rhimes' audiobook Year of Yes, and enjoyed it so much that I replayed it a second time. Based on a recommendation, I started meditating with the Headspace app and later listened to Andy Pudacombe's book The Headspace Guide to Meditation & Mindfulness across several nights of insomnia. The message that I took away from both books is that I could benefit from welcoming new things with a more open heart and playful mindset.

So when Emily asked me to attend the last gathering of Yoga Rocks the Park, it was easy to say yes. At the event the chance to win a yoga retreat trip to Bali was announced. The world traveler in Emily was excited to sign up and encouraged me to, as well. The New York skeptic in me wondered if there was even a real chance to win, yet the adventurist in me hoped it was possible, so I put my name into the hat. I told Emily that my friends often win things when they are around me. She teased me, saying I must be a lucky charm.

Months later, I received the notification as I was going through TSA in the Knoxville airport, flying home after cheering on my friend Candy at Ironman Chattanooga 2016. My phone was blowing up with text messages. Friends were telling me that I had to check out my latest Facebook post asap. There was a post that I had won the yoga trip to Bali!

The universe invited me to yoga plus travel and I RSVP-ed yes without hesitation.

Throughout this "practice" of life I am learning over and over how to let go of outcomes and accept the invitations at hand.