mike asked me if i think a lot while i ski. i told him, well, when i'm not thinking about improving my skillz, i am usually making some sort of life parallel. laugh all you want, it's how my mind is programmed. i'd consider myself a relatively new skier. i didn't grow up skiing. but i've skiied now for a couple of winters. i'm pretty much game for [almost] anything. i'm at the point now where i can ski harder things, it's just a matter of how fast i do it... and how graceful it looks...
somewhere along the way, i've taken a likening to instructions. when someone who knows how to do something better than me gives me help, i listen. somewhat to a fault. for instance, when i'm on the slopes, i often run through all the things i should be doing: shoulders forward, shift my weight, plant my pole, keep turning, stay to the side... and then, i get to the bottom of the list and hear the voice yelling, "RELAX!" just relax. breathe. i get so caught up in following the person ahead of me, i don't make my own tracks, which is so much the fun of it all! i get so caught up in how i should be doing things, how it should look, that i forget to "do me." i forget to relax. i forget to give myself a bit of grace. i compare myself to "everyone else" whizzing by me. i don't let myself go at my own pace.
but when you ski, there are some times when you just have to let your skis face straight down the hill in order to keep going. so i'm learning to keep my eyes open for that part. and relax.
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