Omayra Acevedo, Nederland. Today, I took a yoga class at the Gilpin County Community Center. I had hoped that it would help me refocus and compose myself from all the stress I have been dealing with. It did help a little, but I still feel like I’m missing something. As if there is a void in my soul that is one experience away from being depleted. Perhaps, this is the definition of feeling lost.

My intent is not to make anyone feel bad. I’m just a very honest and open person. I know that this is part of being human. I’d rather you felt relatable than sorry. I know eventually all will be well. Emotions are like the weather. Sometimes it rains, sometimes it pours, some days are full of flurries; other days there’s a storm so severe you fear for the safety of your own thoughts. There are also days when the sun shines so intensely that squinting or wearing sun glasses is not enough to protect you from the radiating brightness. Above all else, I know that there are days you can experience all seasons at once….

It’s okay to feel exhaustion or the temptation to give up. In the end, what matters is that you find the strength to hold on to hope. The strength to not only tell yourself that things will be fine, but to truly believe it. I tend to forget that life is everchanging. Things won’t always be like this. I have to remind myself that through the stress, sadness, confusion or displacement, that is where I find the strongest part of me, waiting to be pulled to the surface. 

What would I hear myself telling my students at the very moment they feel like quitting? Fight for it! Giving up is never an option! Today I will do what others won’t, so that tomorrow I will do what others can’t! Attitude is everything! When you want to quit, remember why you started! I can go on and on. And so, I will.

No, yoga didn’t solve my problems, but it sure felt good to breathe deeply and detox my body. So, what am I to do with everything happening in my life and around me? As weathered as I feel, I am still going to make the conscience choice to only focus on the positive things – regardless of how small or non-existent they may seem at the moment. 

For more information on the GCCC schedules, check out their website at https://www.gilpinrecreation.com/fitness.htm.

(Originally published in the December 5, 2019, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)