If you know me at all, you know that music has great importance in my life. I started playing the piano when I was 5 years old. I went on to play the flute and the oboe in various bands and orchestras. Playing music was the foundation of my youth and I continued to play music until the end of my freshman year of college. At that point I decided that while I had tremendous appreciation for music composition and theory, I didn't have the passion necessary to make music my career. While my desire to study music faded, my love of lyrics and melodies and theory, never has. Now I love to sit back and read lyrics and listen and absorb that passion in others.
I have slowly and steadily been crawling out from under a giant boulder of pain the last few months. Real joy has pretty much eluded me since August 20, 2009. This doesn't mean I have been miserable 24/7 or that I haven't had fun on occassion, just that I hadn't felt my heart sing in many, many months. I have felt warmth and compassion, understanding and support, but I hadn't felt joy . . . until a couple of weeks ago.
I was out on the tennis court playing tennis for the first time since last August. The sun was shining and I felt warm and comfortable and I was hitting tennis balls. Joy. You would think that I grew up playing tennis or that I was great at playing tennis, but the truth is this: At my absolute best, I have mere glimpses of mediocrity on the tennis court. It didn't matter that I lost far more games than I won, that I double-faulted a zillion times or that I was awake with knee pain that whole night. For a moment with the sun shining down on me on a warm spring day and I felt something I hadn't felt in close to a year. Joy.
The past few weeks I have been doing more Nutrition Counseling and getting back into the swing of things business-wise. I taught a Diabetes class last week and talked to many fabulous people at a health fair on Friday. I had a fun consult with a new mom who is transitioning her 1 year old into her vegetarian lifestyle and I am quite excited about a consult this week with a young, healthy, cyclist who has type 2 diabetes. I have even felt like writing, again.
If you know me at all, you know that I am a huge Beatles fan. What you might not know is that Here Comes the Sun has always been my favorite Beatles song. I know it is kind of a strange choice - it was written by Harrison (with help from Eric Clapton) and Lennon had no contribution to the recording. Something about that particular song has always lifted me up. The last few days as I once again explore my passion for all things food and nutrition, I have had some old, familiar lyrics playing in the back of my mind . . . only this time they have new meaning.
Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
and I say it's all right
Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
and I say it's all right
Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been clear
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun,
and I say it's all right
It's all right
So, here's to the snow melting and here's to the smile returning to the faces.
In Health (and with a sprinkle of Joy),
Yo
