One year, and counting

Today I complete a year of walking daily, and tracking 10k steps. For some, this is not a big deal. It is, for me. For me it is affirmation that I am capable of prioritizing self-care. It is confidence that I can start something and stick with it. It is courage that I can overcome obstacles and figure my way out. It is pride that I inspire/guilt/shame others into taking care of their health. 

The odds are stacked against me. I work a full-time job, a somewhat stressful one at that, and I work hard at it. I had just moved countries, from a cushy life of having a cook - maid - car cleaner plus a myriad of time and labor-saving apps, to a country where we have to cook, clean, shop, drive, and do everything in between. Not to mention our family, including a teenager and a soon-to-be one, trying to settle into a new life. 

I can go into the why - the raison d'etre - for this change, or the what - the hundreds of Rubik's cube moves to get to the right position, or the how - the mechanics of navigating the uncertainty of it all, or the who - the people in my life that enabled this transition. I can do a retrospective - of what went well and what could've gone better, or reflections of learnings along the way.

But today is not about any of that. It is about contentment. Content that this is a milestone, along with acknowledgement that it is but one milestone in a long journey. And gratitude. Gratitude for being alive, for the earth that bears my weight, for the four seasons that it has seen in the one year, for time that magically emerged when I needed it, and whose passage heals all. 

I bow down in humility to the powers that be, and offer prayers and thanks. For letting me happen, and for letting me be.