A week ago, I attended a yoga class for the first time… hours before going, I had a little bit of anxiety… you know,like  “first day of school” kind of anxiety… I kept debating whether to go or not… I mean, it wasn’t my first gym class… I’ve pretty much tried every other class that’s offered in my gym since I joined about a month ago… I’ve even already done PiYo — which is an intense hybrid of yoga and Pilates…so I don’t know why the anxiety…

Well, I talked myself into it and attended the class… and I absolutely loved it! Midway, as we were doing a half-shoulder stand pose, my memory took me back to elementary school when I gave gymnastics a shot… It was basic gymnastics, which I quickly learned I wasn’t great at… one of the things they were teaching us in class was a backwards somersault… easy, right? Nope, not for this little girl… I tried… and tried… I rocked back and forth… then tried pushing my hips over my head backwards… and I just — could — not roll backwards! It could have been fear… that or my head was too big… Of course, my elementary friend who I went to gymnastics with laughed at me… but I laughed also… under the embarrassment, of course…

Thankfully, this little bump in the road didn’t deter me from trying other avenues of athleticism and art… in elementary I did ballet and tap dance for a couple of years (until I couldn’t stand wearing leotards any longer)… then in middle school I played basketball (which I wasn’t great at either but I had fun)… volleyball (I loved!)… tennis (my main love & sport throughout high school)… I even ran track in high school, which again — I wasn’t great at… (I mean I secretly hated running)(wait — still hate running)…

Is there a point to my rant? Yes, there is… basically, whether in sports or in life… If there’s something you’ve been wanting to do… you just have to go for it and give it a chance — at least once… even if it’s something you’re terrified to try — muster up the courage to do it, because you only live once! And you might just surprise yourself… even if you come out hating it? You at least had the courage to try… and as the saying goes, ” it’s better to regret something you did rather than something you didn’t do”…

Now for something really embarrassing… a picture of my Dad & I — in my confusing outfit (sports socks & my favorite white,patent leather shoes), buck teeth, and horrible bowl cut… but as awkward & embarrassing this is, I love it because it’s with my Dad — who passed away a couple of years ago… this was about the age I tried out gymnastics… so basically, an all around embarrassing year for me 😉 Happy Monday!