I’m far from being the poster child for having a positive mindset and the ability to let things go. But I’m closer than I was 2 years ago – heck even 1 year ago. I was in quite the pickle last week and I didn’t get a chance to journal about it because I’ve been do busy with the pre-delivery inspection with the new house, going back and forth between the builder, lawyer, picking out appliances…but we finally closed it yesterday! After our November 2012 purchase LOL! So anyway, here’s what happened last Tuesday:
I was coming out of the gym after teaching my 6am BodyPump class. I got to my car in the parking lot, popped open the trunk, dumped my stuff inside and slammed it shut – WITH MY KEYS INSIDE! I did not unlock the car beforehand, I had no spare (it broke and I never got another one – don’t procrastinate people!), hubby was not answering his phone, it was 7:10am and I had to go out to train a client for 7:30. On top of that, I had to go to school and write a nutrition exam later that morning! I literally stared at my car for a good 2 minutes, thinking “FVCK! I can’t make it to my client, I am losing money, I have no key, Joe is MIA, the car dealership isn’t going to open for another 2 hours, I have nutrition exam at 10:30am and my notes are in the trunk…blah blah blah.”
But then I stepped back, took a deep breath, and tried to drum up a solution. First I called my client to explain and apologize that we will probably have to reschedule – I HATE not being able to keep my commitment. Luckily, he was awesome enough to offer to pick me up so that we can still train. I then realized that I have a CAA membership and that they could totally help “break into” my car!
When I called CAA they told me it would be 105 minutes until they could get to me. Once again I was like FYCK FYCK FYCK! I’m going to fail my exam! I was about to lose it – this day was just killing me.
When I told myself to calm down, I remember that I had photos of my notes on my phone – because I randomly do that sometimes. So I took the extra time to study! CAA ended up arriving within the hour so I still made it to school on time and confidently wrote the exam!
There was one more small hiccup – when I was pulling out of the parking lot after being parked there for 4 hours, I was prompted to pay $15 for parking – when it’s normally FREE. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I calmly spoke to security and explained the situation, while grabbing for my wallet just in case. He’d let it slide this time he said.
At the end of the madness, I took a few moments to pay gratitude and to recognize that I was super lucky with the way things had turned out and it ended up being an awesome day and week.
I know that not all difficult situations come out with a positive ending right away, but it can, eventually. When you can take control of a situation, do it. Change it. Or adapt to it and make the best of it. Otherwise, walk away from it and let it go.
For me, I had to calm down and accept that I was locked out of my car, potentially reschedule with my client, and wait for hubby to call me back – and maybe with the calmer mindset I would’ve realized that I could call CAA sooner.
The old me would’ve probably started crying and given up on my entire day – no joke. I used to be a petty little thing who had to have control over everything. I was impatient, and compared my life to others all the time – their jobs, money, social circle, clothes etc.
When you start to make more time for yourself and drown out all the distractions, you are left with a clearer mind, positive attitude, and cherish your time more because you will never get it back. For me, the way I got here was through Yoga.
So don’t waste time with anger and negativity. Things won’t change unless you do.
