I had a soulful day today. It started with a spin class at Soul Cycle with my brother. As my legs propelled beneath me and the dark room soothed my eyes, I began to remove myself from the details of the day that often fill my head - what was I going to have for lunch? Did I remember to email George about the change in time? I have to write that thank you note. Instead my mind drifted between telling myself to breath and to relax my shoulders, and gratitude. The sheer power of that moment. Six years ago, my dream was to be normal. To be free from bed. Free from pain. Free from painkillers. And there I was, just like everyone else, on a Sunday morning. Free from bed. Free from painkillers. And for that moment, free from pain. That forty-five minutes was empowering. I could do anything. Maybe I should become an instructor? Okay, Sally - one step at a time. Let's try another class first. Class #4 that would be. But I felt something in my soul spark. I have felt it before but am always enlightened when I am reminded again. The feeling is remembering the power of self: what I can do in the world instead of what I can't; what I am doing instead of what I am not; my smile instead of my thighs. I was completely present without any distraction. I was soulFULL. I left the class and hugged my brother. For some reason he knew exactly how I felt without any needed words.
Appropriately so, this happened today, on Father's Day. The man who keeps everything in perspective, who peddles along consistently, powering up the hills and patiently keeps pace in the valleys. Who is lead shield when the wind picks up and stops to help with a flat tire. And most of all, the man who appreciates the horizon in both the sunshine and the rain. You, Dad, fill my soul every day.
