Last weekend was a recognition of some huge achievements.
On Friday I, like millions, watched the BBC concert to celebrate Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday. What an incredible man who has done so much for our planet and all it’s inhabitants. I found it hugely moving and reminisced about all the years his familiar voice boomed out of our TV screen as my own children grew up watching his documentaries. Of course me being me, I was instantly drawn to how many times he stood up… sat down… stood back up… I also later saw video footage of him arriving in the car outside The Royal Albert Hall and alighting from it totally unaided and just like during the concert, standing up and siting down with control and balance. My goodness me, if ever there was a lesson right there to never just let your brain turn to mush!
While some are in such a rush to retire, he is a superb example of how beneficial it is to have a passion, to keep your mind and body active, to find something you love and to commit to it. Wasn’t it great to see that little clip of him, days away from celebrating 100 years, still working, recording the new Blue Planet!
Despite his global fame and unparalleled success, he remains still so humble, so gentle and respectful.
We could all benefit from being a bit more David.
Onto Badminton Horse trials and to see the remarkable Ros Canter (as people have cracked the Romeo jokes to me all my life, how she must cope, I can’t imagine) winning Badminton and going on to to make history with Lordships Graffalo as the first same rider /horse partnership to win Badminton together 3 times. Not only that but she had a baby just 12 weeks ago!! To be so composed and deliver such stimulating interviews before she had even taken her riding hat off with her baby coo’ing on her hip and young daughter wrapped around her leg… what dedication to her sport. Keeping it real, she had to dash off just before her dressage test to express milk as her boobs were too big. Love it!
Then the BAFTA’s on Sunday and while Adolescence predictably swept the boards, it was Martin Lewis’ speech on receiving a special award that moved me. He spoke of how he found out he had been nominated 42 years to the day after his mother had died when he was 12, and I quote “For six years, barring school, I barely left the house, and now I am picking up a BAFTA”
He then spoke bravely and a little tearfully to tell whoever was watching that yes, you can turn your life around, you can fight your demons and find your way back (and being the brilliant human that he is, he finished his speech on the primetime platform he had, to bash the chancellor over student fees). How brave and what a strong message. Another big character devoting himself to sharing his passion and educating others.
Earlier last week, Rachel Entrekin made history by beating both men and women to win the Cocodona ultra marathon in Arizona. "What is that" you might well ask! Well, recognised as one of the world’s toughest ultras, it is 253 miles long including numerous elevations and desert. She tells of surviving on mashed potatoes (easy to swallow, don’t waste energy on chewing) and 19 minutes’ sleep over 56 hours. What an unbelievable achievement - to keep pushing when everything in your body is screaming at you to stop. The power of the mind over the body.
However, was it not put into perspective if, like me, you happened to watch The Antiques Roadshow, presenting on Sunday at Bletchley park, based around artefacts and memories from WW2. What exceptional men and women who performed acts of unimaginable courage and selflessness. Their stories deserve to be heard over and over again. Simple, everyday folk who found themselves in uniform, fighting for their country. Can we even begin to imagine?
We can’t all break world records or win awards. We can’t all expect stratospheric careers and global success. However, we can all change our lives and impact those around us, in even the smallest ways. I think if we look back and reflect on experiences we have survived, we can ALL think of challenges and situations we thought we could never get through, times that seemed never ending, pain that seemed too much to bear. Yet here we are. We are all warriors. We are all world champions in our own lives.
It can be easy to overlook our achievements but helpful to reflect sometimes in order to see how brilliant we all are. Maybe you had the courage to leave a job or friendship or even a marriage that made you unhappy. Maybe you finally took up that activity or started that project you had always put off as you were scared of failing. Maybe you just finally learned to say no sometimes. All big wins in their own right and all worthy of celebrating, even quietly and privately.
I was determined to clear and organise the chaos that is my garage. Stored furniture, xmas decs I don’t want any more: you know how it is. As a bit of a control freak, this disorganised clutter was constantly chipping away at my OCD brain. RIGHT! A couple of Fridays ago, I marched over, opened the door, looked at the enormous job in front of me, shut the door and went back to the house, totally overwhelmed. Instead I lay on the sofa, stuck on my audio book and gave myself the afternoon off with a note to self - it's Friday. You need to stop!
Fast forward to last weekend and having got a few other ducks in a row, I opened that door again and worked my way through, selling some things on eBay, doing a tip run, stacking and sorting. I was SO ridiculously pleased with myself. Will it benefit anyone or make any difference in the world? No, of course not but I had achieved something that showed me how important it is to listen to myself. I recognised that on the other Friday, choosing to postpone it was the right thing to do rather than seeing it as a cop out and that giving myself space and time to come back to it was the better option. Just a little win, but a win nonetheless. I didn't win Badminton or get a lifetime achievement award, but I know how many of you will feel my joy!
It is a tough old world out there and to steal a well used quote “comparison is the thief of joy”.
If you find yourself “falling short”, perhaps take a moment to consider who you are measuring yourself against - is it a fair and reasonable comparison? Are you taking into account what you have already ticked off and achieved in your day. My goodness! this is something I have had to work SO hard at; am I falling short? Could I have done more? and learning to say to myself “what you did today was enough’.
I find the following a really useful tool - if you find yourself tutting over what you haven’t done or getting upset over not matching up where you think you fall short, take a moment to focus on what today, you HAVE done. It may not be ground breaking but acknowledge, recognise and reward yourself for what you HAVE achieved, even if you just got dressed and faced the world. Sometimes, that is enough.
A brilliant piece of advice I was given was this - talk to yourself the same way you would talk to your best friend. If they are having a wobble, a moment of insecurity or self doubt you would instantly jump in to lift them up, point out their strengths and successes, show them what they have done well so why not to yourself? Learn to be your own best friend. No-one wants to revisit that terrible experience or that dreadful pain or that life changing loss but sometimes it is useful to reflect on that time and remember how strong you were, how you DID get through it, how you ARE still here and that is part of what makes you amazing.
Jay Shetty says in his book Think like a monk, “Be the person you would want to be in a relationship with”. Maybe that means pulling your socks up. Maybe that means recognising how wonderful you are! I'll leave that with you.
Wrapping up, this week I received an email following last week's blog from a friend and fellow teacher who I worked with a few years ago and I share -
"Hi Juliet!. A good article about Pilates and running......I have now run over 50,000 miles and recently put in a 31 minute 5k at age 80. I hold my Club's record for running (& finishing before the cut-off) their annual 10 mile cross country championship 54 years apart (1969 & 2023).
My brother has replacement hips and my sister replacement knees - neither run nor do Pilates....."
I think we are all warriors deep down. We just sometimes need to remind ourselves!
If you are still unsure about joining us online and would like to see more of what we get up to, here is a link to a 30 min pure mat mixed ability class. Have a look and always come back to me with your comments and questions.
For just
£45 a month, you can access 7 live classes (in a typical week)
plus access to a huge library
plus me on the end of the phone or FaceTime to discuss any areas where you may want more support
plus the invitation to request specific classes
plus social events and get togethers.
