I had become a really good excuse maker......"My knee hurts"......"I'll meet you up there in a minute"......"No, I'd rather stand, thanks"........After 8 years of Open Houses and Concerts at our little school, I had a whole repertoire.....all designed to keep me from having to climb the numerous flights of stairs, or sit in those desks....you know, the torturous ones that have the table top attached to the seat. Why did I go to such lengths, to avoid those things? Because I couldn't climb one of those flights of stairs (much less the three flights required to go from the lower building to the upper) without being so out of breath that I thought I might faint. Because I could not so much as wedge my ever increasing girth into one of those demon desks in a classroom, That's why!
Tonight, at the 9th straight Open House I have attended at our little school (Where Baby Girl will be a SENIOR!) ( Babiest Girl would have been a Freshman, but I can now release the news that she will be attending a fancy school in a neighboring town, and BOY, is she excited!), I climbed those stairs - ALL. OF. THEM.....even the three flights between buildings. I sat in those desks - with room to spare between my body and the laminate desktop....Nothing hurt, I was never out of breath....not once, and my biggest fear of all, getting stuck in one of those damnable desks - evaporated - like a drop of rain falling on a steamy sidewalk. As cheesy as it sounds, I don't mind admitting that when I climbed the last few steps of the three flights, the song from Rocky was blaring in my head, resonating with a jubilance reserved for major life events....and make no mistake....this. was. one.
There have been many such victories, in the last few weeks - I have made the transition from Plus Size clothing to what I have long referred to as Regular People clothing. I can cross my legs - something I haven't done in over 20 years. I can reach the back of my head with my curling iron, and not have to prop my arm on the wall by the sink to hold it there. I can bend over in a chair and buckle my shoes. I can once again, for the first time since we were Newlyweds, steal one of Johns Tee Shirts and have it be big enough for a night shirt. My rings, once devices of circulation strangulation are now falling off of my fingers (I recently lost my thumb ring - only to find it on the floorboard of the car). I can work in the yard, and use a dustpan. I can get down on my knees to peer into the cavernous depths of my baking dish cupboard, AND get back up. I actually carried boxes and other assorted heavy items into College Boys Dorm last weekend....multiple trips, up stairs and hills, instead of staying in the room and "organizing", like I did last year....in short, after 62 pounds lost, I am a functioning human again.
I list these things, not to brag, but to catalog....against the day that I falter - days when temptation and diet exhaustion get the better of me....to remind myself that NOTHING tastes as good as climbing those stairs tonight FELT....to remind myself that a large Coke from the Sonic is a poor substitute for the satisfaction I felt as I slipped into that desk.....to remind myself that there are even greater things waiting for me at the end of this weight loss journey....bike rides, and a hike up to the Appalachian Trail.....zip lining and indoor skydiving (Hey - they're on my bucket list)....high heels and a slinky dress (Yes, the Diva in me only lies dormant - not dead!).....Health....Fitness....who knows what I will dream up while I loose the last 40 pounds....after all....you're only as young as you feel.....Thanks be to God.
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