First Down, Inches to Go

What a festive time of year, as we bask in the afterglow of Christmas and look ahead with hope toward a new year.  And resolutions ... we make them, we break them, but perhaps we have good intentions and better habits if only for a short while.

Some resolutions are pretty big.  Stop smoking.  Read the Bible cover to cover.  Lose weight.  There's plenty to choose from.  Classic resolutions ... fancy resolutions ... healthy resolutions.

But this year, I'm going all out on something I've been putting off and giving up on for decades.  It's so dramatic ... so deep ... it requires sharing so I can be held accountable.

It involves my toes.

No, seriously ... I have a goal ... to touch my toes.

[I'll wait for the room to settle down.  Let me know when you're ready to continue.]

I know people who can palm the floor, and that's all fine and dandy.  I'm not jealous.  Much.

I'm just working to make a simple connection between my index finger and a hallux.  (That's a big toe.  And yes, I looked it up.)

For as long as I can recall, I've never been able to touch my toes.  I'm sure did it as a baby, but then again, I think I could put my foot behind my head.  Didn't we all do that?  No?  Hmm.

For years, I blamed my separation of upper and lower phalanges on long legs and a short torso.  Hmm ... perhaps that's not it after all.  I mean ... I don't really look disproportionate.   My beltline isn't at the 3/4 mark between my feet and my head.  If it were, I'd be on exposition in a traveling carnival.

And it's not because there's all THAT much to work around when I bend at the waist.  A gut is a gut ... I should be able to displace what I have on the way down.  So that's no excuse.

I think it's simply a lack of flexibility.  An ugly truth.  Unfortunate, but there it is.

Funny, I do recall as a kid being able to put my legs (lanky as they are) into a Lotus position.  I could even walk around in that position on my knees.  I know ... I don't understand why I didn't make it on Star Search either.  Course, I don't think Mr. Lotus had that type of mobility in mind when he invented the inverted criss-cross-applesauce leg pretzel.

Now I realize touching your toes isn't a huge requirement in life.  It's not on a college application form.  It's not a prerequisite for membership in the country club.  It's not even necessary for filing your taxes (although I realize some folks feel they are bent over in that process, but we won't dwindle on that word picture.)

Toe touching is just a personal "thing" that I want to be able to say I can do.  To myself ... not as a public decree.  Frankly, I'm befuddled as to why this is has become an issue.  I take the stairs everywhere.  I park and walk every morning and evening.  I even go to different buildings for bathroom breaks during the day so I can squeeze in activity whenever I can.  Just keep moving, just keep moving, just keep moving, moving, moving ... what do we do?  We moooove!  (Sorry ... Nemo reference snuck in there.)

Somewhere along the line, I became inflexible.  Unable to stretch my boundaries ... make ends meet, so to speak.  And the longer I let it go, the tougher it will be to reach that goal.

Whoa there ...
wrong direction!

Have you become inflexible over the years?  Determined that the way things have always been is the way they will always (or should always) be?  Have you been telling yourself that a situation is what it is and there's nothing you can do about it?  How many opportunities are you potentially missing due to an unwillingness to stretch yourself ... to reach beyond your current limitation and do just a little more?  Even if it means just an increment a day ... it can't be that far out of your reach.

When I first started my quest (I've been working on this on and off for over a year), I could only reach just below the halfway point between my knees and the final destination before I was sure things were going to tear apart.  Calves, thighs and back ... all shredding apart.  At least, that's what it felt like.

This evening ... I'm pleased to report that I'm LESS than two inches away.  And mind you, I DON'T bounce.  I heard that can make your eyes cross permanently and cause deafness in one ear.  Not to mention, you may not come back up if you bounce.  I prefer to walk upright, thank you very much.

At this rate, I may have this resolution done by the end of the month.  I'll get to work on the mental flexibility all year long.  And then some.  We could all use more mental flexibility.  Yes, indeed.  And in an election year, for cryin' out loud.

What's your resolution?  Not too late to make one!