To celebrate welcoming in the year 2021, I blogged about Flight 2021 back in January. We are now seven months into the year and I would have never guessed that my flight would have had a bumpy takeoff and a "so far" soft landing.
The concept of flight is something that has always terrified me. I don't understand the physics of flight but certainly do understand the concept of gravity and falls. Last week, I flew to Indiana via Chicago. I had an amazing weekend - my first firefly (lightning bug) sightings, the incredible thunder and rain of the Midwest, outrunning a storm by boat, a Chicago deep dish pizza. A yoga weekend compliments of Bodyworks Yoga. I even did something a bit outside of my comfort zone! I was towed on an inflatable couch by a boat that seemed like it was going 30 miles per hour all the while I screamed and laughed.
But more importantly, I was witness to others (myself included) taking flight. There were shared conversations, laughter, tears. There was vulnerability that paved the way for strength and empowered "I am" statements. Each person was affirmed and then also assigned other "you are" defining words.
I left Chicago at 7:45 pm with clouds and thunder and with gratitude that I did not have to share my row on the flight home with anyone else. I was able to simply relax to the hum of the airplane engine and listen to my new favorite playlist. And I was totally enthralled with the concept of flying towards a new sunset. In the foreground of the view was a smudged window. And I got to thinking as I always do.
The smudged window is equal to all the noise in our lives. It can be the negative vibes that we may invite into our lives through negative self-talk. The smudged window is also the busyness that does not allow us to focus on the present or even the future, but keeps us in the past. That same smudged window, if looking from another perspective, could have been the faceprint of a tiny human on his or her first flight to California to see the redwoods and Yosemite and maybe even Disneyland. What I acknowledged from that plane window was that in spite of the smudge, I was able to see the perfectly clear sunset. My goal is to let the smudges in life blur into the foreground while looking at the bigger picture of having a vision for my life - one of acceptance, hope and excitement for the future. From my hopeful hips to yours, I hope you see the smudges of your life as part of your story, but not your only story!