She Never Quit. And Neither Can We

Even before the strange times we’re living in now, I used to tell my clients that “normal was just a setting on the dryer”. Because truth is, there is no such thing as normal, really.

But I know that right now, we long to return to whatever version of ‘normal’ we usually live with. So each day this month, I’m offering you four gifts that I hope will give you something good to think about: one image, one quote, one idea, and one thing you might want to try.

If this is helpful, share it with a friend. And thank you. :)

ONE IMAGE

ONE QUOTE

Life is like riding a bicycle.
To keep your balance,
you must keep moving.
_{― Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955) Theoretical physicist}

ONE IDEA

In so many ways, it feels like the earth has come to a standstill, doesn’t it? Even if, like me, you’re still seeing clients at least on line and working the best you can, the days are long and our daily rhythms are completely different from what most of us are used to.

If you’re working from home, managing kids who can’t leave the house, trying to keep a family and a business going, it can feel a bit surreal. And the longer this time of ‘social distancing’ continues, the harder it may be to keep moving.

And yet, that’s exactly what we have to do.

Keep. Moving.

When my Granny was 101, she developed a small fracture in her back that was really painful. For a while, she stopped leaving her room, in the assisted living where she lived, for much of anything. She stopped going to the dining room, stopped flirting with the ‘young’ men (in their 90’s) who were there, stopped working out in the Silver Sneakers exercise class.

And she almost stopped eating. I thought she was done.

And frankly, I couldn’t blame her.

One night, when it was my turn to spend the night and keep her company, I decided to face the inevitable, and give her a chance to talk about it. So as she sat in her chair, gazing at the flowers outside her window, I asked The Question.

“So, Granny? Do you think you’ll ever go back out there to the dining room again?” We both knew what I meant. And I fully expected her to say, in her deep south Georgia draw, “Oh honey, I don’t know. We’ll see.”

But no. Not my Granny. She turned to me with a stern look, and said, “Well Wendy, of course I will – you can’t just quit.”

She sounded mildly exasperated, as if the question itself was ridiculous.

By that time, she’d lived through the Great Depression, World War II, Vietnam, Korea, and the attacks on 9/11. She’d buried two husbands and a son, and seen her share of hardship.

So perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised at all, that when her back healed, she got right back to living, for two more good years, until she died at 103.

She never quit. And neither can we.

ONE THING to TRY

My guess is there’s something about your daily routine, your obligations, your business, or your goals right now that feels really hard.

Maybe it’s something that was fine for the first few weeks of this, like helping the kids with their schoolwork, but has suddenly become exhausting.

Maybe it’s something you were really excited about, like finally having the time to create that new course you have in mind – but you’ve lost your enthusiasm and haven’t created the first module.

At times like this, it helps to find a way to reconnect to your intention, to your passion, and to that determination that I know you had just a few weeks ago.

WHY do you want to do, or need to do, whatever this thing is?

Does it still matter? Is it still important?

It may help to write about it in a journal or talk it out with a friend. Speaking it out loud gives your words more power.

Then, ask yourself: what is one thing you could do today that would move you one step closer to your intention? or one thing you could do to make it all easier?

There is an answer to each of those questions.

Let me know what you come up with.

And be well,