Where Have I Been??

I started this blog back in April 2011 after I was laid off from my job. I was in a pretty desperate place in my life - feeling completely exhausted physically and mentally, extremely unmotivated, terribly de-conditioned given that my career has been centered around health/fitness combined with  major brain fog and spiritual emptiness. Having experienced the "parenting" of my parents while watching their health slowly deteriorate and then seeing them pass from this life to the next was an overwhelming experience for me. I've had a tough time dealing with their deaths. They were the biggest supporters and understood me better than anyone else. Losing both of them within 12 days was the hardest moment in my life.

Losing my job has been an absolute blessing. As I was leaving a job, my husband took on a job that allowed me to stay at home and not have to "rush" to get something else. After spending a week in Vancouver, BC visiting my brother and his family, I returned to my home with high hopes of being renewed, refreshed, and revived in my body, mind, and spirit. The first month was rough. I started about 10 new projects before settling on one main one - updating my kitchen. I went through a time of sickness that kept my daily pace rather slow. One of my daughters was really struggling in life and my heart was torn a part. Seeing your child suffer mentally is beyond expression. After going to the doctor for a physical and beginning to "rethink" my life I saw myself slowly re-emerging. I started taking care of Carol Renee. I got weekly massages, attended a Yoga Restorative Retreat, pampered myself with pedicures/manicures, and I began counseling sessions to work through some major issues in my life.  I, also, began co-teaching Zumba classes with a dear friend who just let me dive in head-first. I've been certified to teach Zumba since the fall of 2009 but never really took the time to practice and teach regularly. I also discovered teachings by a psychiatrist, Dr. Tim Jennings (www.comeandreason.com), that has totally changed my thinking about God's love for me. Each day I could feel my old self coming back. I could sense my smile coming through my eyes and not just a curve of my lips on my face.

The kitchen is complete (almost ). My daughter is doing much better and is learning coping skills to deal with the many pressures and stressors of life. Things are beginning to look up for me. I'm getting back into the one thing that I loved to do early in my career - instructing/teaching others in the field of fitness/wellness.

True wisdom comes through the experience in our lives. Until you go through valleys, struggles, trials and disappointments - trail through the rough patches then emerge on the other side and begin climbing that mountain - it's really hard to relate with other people when they are struggling through life. I've always been a firm believer that whatever I go through in life is just an avenue for me to relate, share, and understood someone else going through the same thing. Life is not for the faint-hearted. To appreciate it all you have to take each life experience and learn from it - choose to make it a positive energy to fuel your life.

Watch the video "Better Than A Hallelujah" Amy Grant