This Is My Challenge

One of my closest friends is going through some tough times.  She is stuck in a place in her life that she is trying desperately to escape.  It isn't anything terribly drastic, just an overwhelming number of things to deal with, the worst of which is the real estate market.  She feels like she is juggling with leaden feet.  Every day she is faced with these problems and a situation that is largely out of her control.  I, on the other hand, am dealing with challenges that I can control.  Every step I take, every hour that I exercise, every morsel of food I put in my mouth, is something I have chosen.  There is tremendous power in choice.

Of course, with power comes responsibility.  Because I have the power to face my challenges, I also have the responsibility to follow through.  I cannot allow myself to fall into the trap of blaming genetics or the stresses of my life.  I do not have the luxury of saying, "I cannot control this, so I will not even try."  That is an excuse, a cop out.  I have no use for excuses.  Wait!  Don't think that I am heartless.  I do understand excuses.  I know why people use them.  I do not intend to judge anyone who succumbs to them.  Excuses are convenient, they are insidious, and it is so easy to fall under their spell.  In my own life, however, I refuse to fall prey to the seductive siren song of blaming anyone or anything, even myself.  My appearance, the person I am, is what it is.  I am a creature of my own design.  I have the power to change myself.  I reinvent myself every day, with every decision I make.

The decisions I made today included cleaning my home environment, eating healthy and nutritious food, and accomplishing sixty minutes of moderately high energy aerobic exercise.  I love that I have the luxury of being able to do all of these things for myself and that I have the privilege of free time in which to do them.  I love my life!