Making the Decision

A friend contacted us a few weeks ago deeply disturbed by the weight she'd gained since the birth of her last child. Mostly she had a desire to get herself to the gym more often, but repeatedly came up with reasons why not. She would go one or two times one week, then skip it the next. It didn't help that her body shame and disgust were so strong as to make the experience of being at the gym and confronting the body she so hated extremely uncomfortable. In listening to her struggle, a wise friend reflected back to her that it simply didn't sound like she had actually decided to lose weight. Sure, she was battling herself, hating herself, but she hadn't made the clear decision to lose weight.

We believe it is one of life's greatest, most exciting and powerful experiences to take action in line with a decision, but the decision must come first. To "decide" shares a common root with words like "suicide", "pesticide", "homicide", which involve the death or killing of something or someone. To decide to live in a new way is to allow an old way to die. For this courageous woman, by reaching out for support and being willing to investigate her pain, she discovered that it was the thinking of her self and her body as weak that needed to die so she could discover the possibility of her own strength. Since deciding not only to lose weight, but to know herself as powerful and strong, she has been going to the gym now 6 days a week and is living proof every day!

"The greatest part is acting after making a decision." Indigo Girls