Love 101
Today I went to Ikea for a cutting board and came back with an epiphany.
I'm in love. I always have been. I just kind of didn't want to accept it. Not because of fear of rejection. But because I thought it was silly. I'm in love with love, folks.
It turns out this blog is going to be just as much about love as it will be about health. Here's why I'm okay with it:
On my way home from Ikea, my backseat cluttered with a giant vase and the big blue bag, I got stuck in traffic. Not everyone is on March break, I remembered. I sat there in my car, listening to Bobby Long, enjoying a ring-pop I got from the 80s theme day at work, and after about 20 minutes I decided to try out the shortcut a coworker had taught me. Except I was in the wrong place for the shortcut. Not the same exit I thought it was, apparently. So I began a giant detour that would add an additional 40 minutes to what could have been a 10 minute wait to get onto the 15-South. From there, it would have been no more than 5 minutes to get home. Instead I took the 20 and wound up missing my exit, only to find myself on the 15-North. Ironic maybe. After cursing myself for being so impatient, I realized that maybe this was meant to be the entire time.
I knew I would have to drive passed my favorite cafe, a spot I've been neglecting since I got the internet at home. I've been thinking about it the last few days and how I should go there and write for a change. So as I approached Shaika on the corner of Old Orchard and Sherbrooke in NDG, I decided I would stop in if a convenient parking spot was available. Lo and behold there was one, so I parked and ordered a green salad and started writing about my twisted day.
On my way out this afternoon, I dropped my keys down the elevator shaft, not the first person to do so I would find out, but it made me panic. Luckily Ron the building manager was only a few blocks away and he came to my rescue. We went to the basement, he opened the elevator door, climbed down to recuperate the keys, and there they were, not flattened as I'd imagined, but the heart-shaped keychain had certainly taken a beating.
I looked around at the people in the cafe and felt at ease. I decided it would be a good opportunity for me to try to map out the 10 week course I might teach in the Fall. When I'm at home, I have a hard time focusing on important things that have particular topics. Writing term papers and studying for exams were always a challenge so I'd wind up at a cafe where I'd have an easier time staying on track. But I went to university before Facebook took over my life, so now it's better if I just leave the laptop at home and kick it old school with my paper and pen.
I began by asking myself what kind of class I would want to sign up for. Then I tried to list topics I would cover on a weekly basis. Week one through ten, and I worked backwards to make sure the classes got people somewhere. I got about 3 weeks in when I was distracted by two people talking loudly in the quiet cafe. I got frustrated and had to try a different approach to inventing a course on wellness. I started drawing a mind map with the central theme "Holistic Health." If you haven't made a mind map before, I highly recommend them for any project you're taking on, or even if you're just feeling stuck. They're great for anything professional, personal or creative. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map
From the central theme, I branched off three areas: "Body, Mind, and Spirit." Then I started adding to those themes, things like nutrition, nature, and relationships. I wrote happiness next to Mind and drew a dotted line to connect it with Spirit. I noticed it was a half heart. And happiness is connected to Body, so I drew that dotted line as well and completed the shape.
There it was. The epiphany. Love!
Love is the overall theme, the thread that connects my body, my mind and my spirit. And these days, I feel like I'm emanating love wherever I go, like I'm perspiring love through my pores without meaning to. I'm just happy. I stared at my drawing and let ideas start to pool like raindrops by the sidewalk. I love the feeling that follows a great realization. There's no stopping the rush, as long as my hand can keep up with my mind and the pen doesn't run out of ink.
I could teach a class about love. I'd draw people in who feel like their hearts are tattered like my fabric keychain and give them a chance to love themselves again. Through eating well, conscious living, building trust and confidence, the possibilities are vast and open-ended. So I have some work to do. I feel like I have a long way to go before I can take on the habits of others. But what am I saying? It's all about giving. Giving love. Give people love and you will feel it all around you, even when you're stuck in traffic.
I would take a class about love. I've never seen one offered before. Love 101. That deserves a smiley face. :)
Peace and, well you know by now - love,
Katie
I'm in love. I always have been. I just kind of didn't want to accept it. Not because of fear of rejection. But because I thought it was silly. I'm in love with love, folks.
It turns out this blog is going to be just as much about love as it will be about health. Here's why I'm okay with it:
On my way home from Ikea, my backseat cluttered with a giant vase and the big blue bag, I got stuck in traffic. Not everyone is on March break, I remembered. I sat there in my car, listening to Bobby Long, enjoying a ring-pop I got from the 80s theme day at work, and after about 20 minutes I decided to try out the shortcut a coworker had taught me. Except I was in the wrong place for the shortcut. Not the same exit I thought it was, apparently. So I began a giant detour that would add an additional 40 minutes to what could have been a 10 minute wait to get onto the 15-South. From there, it would have been no more than 5 minutes to get home. Instead I took the 20 and wound up missing my exit, only to find myself on the 15-North. Ironic maybe. After cursing myself for being so impatient, I realized that maybe this was meant to be the entire time.
I knew I would have to drive passed my favorite cafe, a spot I've been neglecting since I got the internet at home. I've been thinking about it the last few days and how I should go there and write for a change. So as I approached Shaika on the corner of Old Orchard and Sherbrooke in NDG, I decided I would stop in if a convenient parking spot was available. Lo and behold there was one, so I parked and ordered a green salad and started writing about my twisted day.
On my way out this afternoon, I dropped my keys down the elevator shaft, not the first person to do so I would find out, but it made me panic. Luckily Ron the building manager was only a few blocks away and he came to my rescue. We went to the basement, he opened the elevator door, climbed down to recuperate the keys, and there they were, not flattened as I'd imagined, but the heart-shaped keychain had certainly taken a beating.
I looked around at the people in the cafe and felt at ease. I decided it would be a good opportunity for me to try to map out the 10 week course I might teach in the Fall. When I'm at home, I have a hard time focusing on important things that have particular topics. Writing term papers and studying for exams were always a challenge so I'd wind up at a cafe where I'd have an easier time staying on track. But I went to university before Facebook took over my life, so now it's better if I just leave the laptop at home and kick it old school with my paper and pen.
I began by asking myself what kind of class I would want to sign up for. Then I tried to list topics I would cover on a weekly basis. Week one through ten, and I worked backwards to make sure the classes got people somewhere. I got about 3 weeks in when I was distracted by two people talking loudly in the quiet cafe. I got frustrated and had to try a different approach to inventing a course on wellness. I started drawing a mind map with the central theme "Holistic Health." If you haven't made a mind map before, I highly recommend them for any project you're taking on, or even if you're just feeling stuck. They're great for anything professional, personal or creative. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map
From the central theme, I branched off three areas: "Body, Mind, and Spirit." Then I started adding to those themes, things like nutrition, nature, and relationships. I wrote happiness next to Mind and drew a dotted line to connect it with Spirit. I noticed it was a half heart. And happiness is connected to Body, so I drew that dotted line as well and completed the shape.
There it was. The epiphany. Love!
Love is the overall theme, the thread that connects my body, my mind and my spirit. And these days, I feel like I'm emanating love wherever I go, like I'm perspiring love through my pores without meaning to. I'm just happy. I stared at my drawing and let ideas start to pool like raindrops by the sidewalk. I love the feeling that follows a great realization. There's no stopping the rush, as long as my hand can keep up with my mind and the pen doesn't run out of ink.
I could teach a class about love. I'd draw people in who feel like their hearts are tattered like my fabric keychain and give them a chance to love themselves again. Through eating well, conscious living, building trust and confidence, the possibilities are vast and open-ended. So I have some work to do. I feel like I have a long way to go before I can take on the habits of others. But what am I saying? It's all about giving. Giving love. Give people love and you will feel it all around you, even when you're stuck in traffic.
I would take a class about love. I've never seen one offered before. Love 101. That deserves a smiley face. :)
Peace and, well you know by now - love,
Katie
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