HEALTHY AND HAPPY Cont'd....

Baggage, luggage, or suitcases are those things you carry around with you that really have no added value to your life.  Sure, you needed those things, once upon a time.  But in reality, if you dropped the load you could go on without it.

My problem is I have a LOT of baggage.  Sometimes I think I have set it aside, dropped it off somewhere down the road, lost or forgot it.  Then, it shows it's weary head, and usually at the most unsuspected times, in the most peculiar places.

So... let's recap.  In my last post, Health and Happy, my complaint was my weight.  It has always been an issue.  It may not have begun as "my" issue, but it was an issue for someone.  Looking back at all the baggage I recall the things that were said to me as a child, and young adult.  Things like, "You could sit and ride on that booty it's so big!", "Lard Ass", "You're getting fat!", "Look at that gut!".  These aren't entirely horrible things to hear, and many people have heard them before and gotten through it.  In my case, it stuck with me like extra strong rubber cement and hasn't let go.

What am I getting at?  I have or had a poor self-image.  Loving myself has been formidable and something I never thought possible.  Until recently.  A while back I entered a college course called Healthy Lifestyle Habits.  It covered the basics, dealt with overall physical health, mental and emotional health, relationships, both hereditary, and unexpected disease.  During this course, I had to revisit every minute aspect of my life, all the drama, the pains, sickness, family diseases, the hurts, broken promises, and unexecuted dreams.

Sometimes it's difficult to unpack baggage.  Think about returning home from vacation; sometimes you carry, or pack way too much, and bring back more than you left with.  The thought of going through everything once you return home, sorting it out, the effort and the process is daunting at best.  Kinda like going through this Health course; unpacking my past, putting it all out on the table, sorting it out and tossing the nonvalue-added items I'd picked up along the way.

It felt as if I was going through the shells I bring home from the beach each year.  Most of them beautiful, shiny and in pristine condition.  Some different, unusual, and noteworthy, while others somehow managed getting cracked, chipped, lost their sheen and appeal on the way home.  I keep the beautiful, unique, and interesting ones, yet throw those fragmented shells in the yard.  That's what I had to do with the baggage I've been carrying around.

Once I got to the bottom of the "suitcase", it was then I realized I had been carrying around a lot of "stuff".  Most of it useless sort of things; bad memories, unhappy moments.  While each was a tool used in educating me in "life", I kept what I had learned from those experiences and discarded the hurt, the pain, the tarnish, and fragmented pieces.  A lot like those broken shells.

So here I am... a clean slate.  It's time to start living life again, I mean for real this time.  I will see every moment as a positive step in the forward direction.  Instead of focusing on EVERYTHING that is wrong, or every wrong that's been done, I am going to see all that is RIGHT and perfect in my life.  I will love myself for WHO I am now... and not who I thought I would be, should have been, or wish I was.  Make sense?

Now... for my health, a recent visit to the doctor revealed some issues which aren't really a concern as of now but could become a MAJOR concern later if I don't do something about them.  I am already predisposed to becoming diabetic because of genetics and heredity, as I discovered when doing a health assessment in the Healthy Lifestyle class I was taking.  Because I am an emotional eater, stress has really taken its toll on my overall health.  I have gained weight, my cholesterol is high, and I am prediabetic.  Not a good or winning combination.

Tackling my weight and regaining a positive mindset is a must.  Unfortunately, at this moment I don't have a lot of time to tell you all what I'm going to do about all this weight, stress and an excessive amount of sugar.  However, I do promise I will discuss the anticipated process in my next post.  Hopefully, the process of writing about my healthy adventure will not only be beneficial and therapeutic for me, but it will be enlightening and inspiring to others as well.

Look for my next post.  It will be titled... F8. (F+Eight=Fate).

Best wishes and God bless as always!
LOVE SAM