She looks great, she must be at least 75 years old and I stare at her often, she catches me staring and I smile at her, she smiles back. I don't imagine she knows why I stare but it is purely in deep admiration of her. She, the small framed woman who is, and probably has always been true to herself. The rest of us on our treadmills, in our 30's, 40's, 50's trying desparately to hide beneath the layers of over size clothing -- perhaps even our husbands over sized shirts to hide our shame or embarrassment of a small bundle of fat. I call my leotard lady Lucille....she just looks like one, tiny red curls cling to her head, over-sized glasses and red lipstick. She stands out in the room as a kind reminder that life is good and you just have to grab it and go with it. I long to tell her that I hope that someday I too will find the courage to wear a shiny leotard and embrace the gift of life in all of its forms. Lucille has, without knowing, become a sign of the future for me. A sign of hopefulness, longevity, letting go and embracing it all, as it comes.
Watching her always brings a gentle smile across my face, even when its been
a hard day. She reminds me of the truth. The truth, that we are what we believe, that we can bring upon ourselves unconditional happiness in small ways, that letting go of our pre-conditioned behaviors can be very good for the soul.When my son was little, I use to always say to him "be true to yourself and you will always find your way home". I live by this most of the time and there are times when I need gentle reminders to take me back to my purposefulness. This has been a very trying week professionally and I needed desparately to step back and reach deep inside to find peace and forgiveness in my soul. I remind myself of what my truth is and that is, to be generous with my heart, intentions and to forgive myself and others. This does not mean allowing others to walk all over me and abuse me but if I can model my truth to others, healing might happen all around. I make a vow to give with my heart, spirit and soul and to continually count my blessings big and small. For truly, as I see it all around me, the world and everything in it, is a gift of immense proportions.
Blessings to Lucille and all of those who on a daily basis work on bringing hope and inspirations to others.
9 comments:
Maria,
I think Lucille may have had just as many "lost" years as the rest of us, but has finally gotten to a place where she's totally at ease with herself. The trick is to learn the art of acceptance before we're 70!! At the rate I'm going, I might get there by the time I'm 82. According to Susan, it'll take me at least that long to recover from all of the stress and strife that my cells have had to bear (You know what she says, that every time you have a stressful day, it takes three days to recover)! Geez, is there any hope for me?!? Haha
xoxo
There is always hope....its just not there if you stop believing.
But I am with you on the stress. It will always be there in one shape or another, we just have to find ways of building the inner strength to ward off its effects.
Have a lovely, stress free day my friend.
love you
Maria,
You are a beautiful soul! You are seeing a reflection of who you are in in Lucille. Your awarness is great, know that your someday is today! You are on a wonderful path.
ToBeMe
Mark
3 days to recover? Help! I'm finding that yoga and meditation is the answer for me, and long walks. I like Lucille, reminds me of the song, and shows us what we can achieve if we truly want.
Mark thank you for visiting my blog, I am truly grateful to have found yours. Your inspirations deeply touch me and I will continue to bring to fruition deep peacefulness.
I loved this post, and the challenge of imagining what Lucille must be like and how she may have lived her life. It reminds me of a gold coin I used to carry around which had the inscription "To thine own self be true." This is a great lesson to teach our kids- thank you for that idea! I think I'm going to look for that coin....
Hugs,
Betty
I love reading your blog. I am younger than "Lucille" and have worked very hard at looking good and taking care of myself. We sometimes think that everything comes so easy to others. Give Lucille and yourself a gift and next time you see her just start chatting. Let me know what happens. Helen
very inspiring post Maria.
first time for me here, i see familiar faces on your blog!!
Hi Betty , Helen and Summer - thank you for visiting and for your lovely thoughts. I have just returned from Italy and I have to catch up on my Blog and all the ones I love to read. Italy was infinitely more than I expected and I hope you will come and read about my adventure. Till next time.....
Ciao Bellas
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