No More Mope on Monday

Everyone should’ve enjoyed the outstanding weather yesterday.  In fact I can envision everyone enjoying the weather all weekend.  There is something about a nice day that just makes me feel inspired, in both a creative and physical sense.  What's great about accommodating temperatures and joyous sun is that it allows you to be imaginative in your activities.  For instance, I called my mother on Sunday and she was out in the yard, gardening and weeding and all things grass related.  Then the phone was handed to my father, who was working on the outside of the house.  Hammering, sawing and in general making lots of noise.  Had he not sworn off spending money on things he's bad at, he might've even gone golfing.  I spent the morning running around in our first Ultimate Frisbee game of our Spring League and then the afternoon assisting yoga.  There are so many options for warm weather—kickball games, disc golf (Frisbee golf), hiking, walking, gardening, running, rollerblading (if this was 1998), skateboarding, biking, yoga outside, sidewalk chalking, basketball, tennis, baseball, painting outside, even reading.  The list goes on forever.   Even more fantastic, sunshine loves our extroverts and introverts alike; you can grab a friend to enjoy together or simply go it alone.  Ultimately it doesn't matter what you do, as long as you are embracing the opportunity that nature has so kindly provided and make a more awesome you.

Getting spontaneous outside makes me feel alive; it rejuvenates me from the bottom of my wiggling toes up through my shining fingertips.  I have a spring in my step.  I have a bounce in my bum.  There is a rhythm in my veins and it feels fantastic.  Often I believe we define our happiness by what we do when it’s gorgeous out.  We are explorers, hikers, runners, athletes, gardeners.  I take pride in my wide range of outdoor activities—it makes me feel like a more awesome me.  But what about when it’s not so nice out—like today?  The sky is gray, the air is heavy with humidity, and the ground is a stagnant damp.  It looks nothing like the day before.  How do I handle a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day?  To be honest, not always well.  Sometimes in fact, I allow it to be my downfall of my entire day.  Often, I embody the gloom of the world around me, as the weather is an excuse to be mopey. Right?

Wrong!  I decided that this is not the way to live.  I cannot allow my definition of myself be dictated by the weather.  I want to still be awesome even when the weather is not.  So when I woke up this morning and it was gross out, I needed to make my own sunshine within.  I wasn't going to leave the house with a bad attitude.  The cure for me?  Sun salutations!  This is a variation of one basic sun salutation, but I often play around with it since my body is still just waking up in the morning...

Add some hip opener stretches, spinal twists and before for you know it you're good to go!   My energy felt so good that even after work I practiced yoga with a friend, had a clean delicious dinner, and caught up with my best friend.   It turned out to be a beautiful day--despite the weather!