The other day I visited the Scottsdale Contemporary Art Museum or SMOCA where I had the chance to see and actually participate in an interesting exhibit. I entered the exhibit room and from floor to ceiling hung hundreds of colorful ribbons suspended by tiny wholes drilled into the walls. Each ribbon had a printed wish. The wishes ranged from the happy—“I wish to go to Bahia,” to the serious and upsetting, “I wish that it is benign,” to everything else possible in-between. My daughter and I spent a long time in this exhibit reading the rows and rows of wishes. One feature of the exhibit was the chance to participate. Anyone who cared to could write their own wish on a small slip of paper, roll it into a tiny tube, select an existing wish ribbon and replace it with their own.
So I selected a wish. The one that made the most sense was: “I wish to take better care of myself.” Tying it on my wrist I became strangely attached to the person who made this wish—someone I would never know and never see and had no connection to other than their wish—the heart’s desire of a stranger.
So I started to wear the wish. I realized that wearing a purple ribbon on my wrist was going to be a bit of a hassle. It gets in the way. It gets wet. It falls into whatever it is I am doing. It bothers me when I prepare food and when I eat. I have even bathed with it. It’s often annoying—like this quest I am on.
Getting fit and losing weight is difficult and, like the ribbon, it’s something constantly with me even when it’s not my immediate focus. Every time I look at it I think about how I can better take care of myself. Not only physically, but emotionally.
In the last two weeks my ribbon has lost its printed message and is beginning to be tattered. I have a feeling it will be around my wrist all summer. While it is with me I am going to honor it and my journey and take a moment each day to wish this fellow traveler—the wisher—a happy, healthy experience. Each day I will remember to thank this unknown friend for the chance to help them on their way by remembering my own.
Stats
It’s been two weeks of high stress related to some family issues and nothing seemed manageable. My program definitely took a hit as I lost sleep, made poor food choices, and basically got off track—so off track I missed a post. However, it’s the recovery and getting back on track in these sorts of circumstances that makes a successful program. I definitely feel back on track in the last day or two.
Weight loss—Nothing this time, but plateaus are inevitable (and I know what happened) so I’m not worried.
Water, fruit, vegetables, etc.—I could do better with the water since it’s suddenly hot here again water is far more important. Also, I have replaced one meal a day with a whey shake. I think this is a great alternative for me and really helps with energy for exercise.
Exercise—Both Pilates and yoga with some time at the gym doing cardio. I am definitely working my way back to an hour of cardio on the elliptical since my illness. Last night I did 40 minutes—a ten minute increase over my previous time.
Attitude—Back on track.
Until next week—may your wishes come true! Go Red!
Note: The exhibit is called “I Wish Your Wish” by Rivane Neuenschwander
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