The title above reflects the important part of life my sweet mother played. She was my cheerleader, my courage, my positive attitude and much more. According to her "you can do anything you want to do in life"!
She and I battled weight all of my life. At age 10, the meanest 'ol doctor I ever hoped to meet (j/k) was convinced I would fall over face down within the year. And, so the first true battle began. We were given a very rigid diet plan to follow and trust me, a mother's love hath no boundaries or sympathy in those situations!! I must say though how great it was to have someone in life who was willing to 'run' the mile with you and keep you on your feet. By the time I hit seventh grade, I was a lean, keen walking machine! I had a neck! Trust me, that was exciting. I still have a picture of me from that grade year and I adore my NECK! Yes, I hope to see it again in the coming months!
I played volleyball for four years at LaVega HS. For whatever reason, mainly inheriting my dad's multiple skills and coordination, I could hit a softball further than anyone and spike a volleyball with precision skill while 'taking someone out' on the other side of the net. No, I was not hostile, I did all those things with a sweet smile on my face. That seemed to add a depth of insult to the injury dealt out to a person. Did my parents get 'a round tuit' during those high school years. Most certainly. Mother never missed a volleyball game and both of them saw every Friday night football game just to watch me march and play the clarinet at halftime!
There were times of doubt for me in high school. I certainly wasn't the 'number 10 hot chick' of the building. I was the country girl with all heart and soul willing to bolster others, comfort when necessary and smile lots, hoping it would be contagious to those in need. When I would have a thought of not dressing right, looking right, my best friend...mother...would smile and say, "remember you're the one who is dressed the right way. Just know that everyone else is not." It worked. I'd go off with a level of confidence and succeed in a experiencing a great time!
I stayed somewhat thin until the middle of my Senior year in high school. I had fallen in love and he had fallen out of love. By the time I hit the
Food became my allie, comfort and joy. If it didn't move, I ate it!! If it moved, I 'kilt' it first, then ate it. The pounds began to pack on and I never looked back. I got my BU diploma, got a first teaching position and got wind really quick that my weight was totally unacceptable! Thus began the second rigid phase of FIGHT THEEEEE FAT!!! Finally in 1973 while teaching at
My simplicity was bolstered with thinking I'll get around tuit soon. Well, somewhat soon. No, really soon. That didn't happen until 1988.
I got the fever, got a round tuit and went back to WW with a best friend from the middle school where I taught. Her name was also Pat...and we were best friends of the worst kind. We could look at someone, size 'em up and throw a glance at each other, already knowing what our decision was on 'him or her'...then, we'd burst into laughter. She and I went to
Now that was an experience. We spent the enter day paddling to catch up with all the skinny paddlers who would lined up under the over hanging shady tree limbs, smoking a ciggy while waiting for us to catch up. We' d see them down the way and say "yeah, there they are, we get to rest a minute!!!" Not so, they'd see us coming and shout, "hurry up, let's go" and they'd be off instantly. We'd paddle harder and struggle more as we gasped for air and prayed for a helicopter to come and LIFT US OUT!!! At one point, we hit white water. The front of the canoe stuck on a rock and tilted juuuuuuuuust enough to dump me out! Very big mistake. It took forever to get me back in and then we died laughing.
That river trip was one of the main reasons we went to WW. Someone took a picture of the two of us in that canoe and brought it to us! Oops. Not nice to look at.
I spent that year focused, on program and dead set on losing fat. It worked. Within 11 months I had dropped 117 pounds. From the waist down (I had been a size 22) suddenly I was trying on size 6 and 8 elastic waist pants. I was in complete and total shock. The point is...I've done this before and I can do this again.
In my humble opinion, it doesn't matter how old we are, what life experiences we have...if we are still willing to learn we can truly enrich our lives. Obstacles in the past spurred me to building blocks in the future. I thank myself for always moving forward. It's like me driving a car...
I have it down! "D" is for DRIVE and "R" is for RACE!!! Let's go!
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