Letting Go...

So I'm sitting in the orthodontist chair this morning and was immediately transported back to my "tween" years. The smell of braces never leaves you. Now as adult I'm answering the same questions and promising to wear my retainer as I did when I was 13. This time, however, it's clear aligners and not braces; and it's my money and not my parents. So on some levels I feel mature, but mostly I feel like a kid, dreading the foreboding toothaches.

It got me thinking, though. As the woman filled my mouth with this expanding foam/goo stuff--I could do nothing but sit there and breathe, consciously making the choice not to throw up.

A lesson in letting go.

I just felt helpless. A feeling I distinctly remember having as a young girl and battle to this day. If I can't control this situation--where is my strength? The longer I sat there and the more I breathed, the more humor and freedom I felt. I kept thinking how silly I probably looked and how not fighting it and choosing the high road (not gagging) was making the whole experience so much easier! I chose not to fight the situation. It is a lesson I am constantly re-teaching myself.

A fantastic quality in us "Rocky Road" type of women is our refusal to be part of the status quo (the norm)-to question what we don't understand and to stand up for what we do. Our fire and zest for life is contagious. But what I'm learning with age is that my real power, my real strength comes from the ability to take a sit back, breathe, and let go when necessary.