On the Up Swing

I am feeling a little better today.  I did make it out on a walk for my lunch hour :)  It was the perfect fall day here in the Pacific Northwest; cloudless sky, bright sun, winds coming from the Columbia River Gorge, trees turning colors, and roads covered with a yellow carpet of leaves.  This is probably one of the last, if not the last, nice day for the rest of the year; I took advantage of it and so did many others. 

When I got down the park on the Bluff it was full!  College students working on homework, couples of all sorts sitting together enjoying the sun and each other, and lots of dogs ;)  The energy at that park reminds me a lot of when I was at the University of Portland.  I loved college and I really came into my own during those 4 years.  I changed from a shy, uncertain teenager, to a confident, outgoing adult.  During that time, I was walking daily about 3 miles.  I had lost enough weight that I got down to 142 lbs; the lightest I had been as an adult.  I was happy and loving my life.  What happened?  Where did that young lady go?  How did I loose that space?

I'm not sure, but I am trying to find a new space that encompasses the confidence and desire for life from that point in my life. I am ready to keep moving forward and remind myself that I am becoming stronger.  Today's walk I did not sweat as much and was not as winded when I finished.  Really the only thing that slowed me down was muscle cramping/pain.  This is another sign that I am getting stronger and that my body is trying to heal and move towards health; now only if my mood/brain/mind would get out of the way and let my body do what it is designed to do.

Looking forward to another day tomorrow as this beautiful day winds down.