My buddy Karen recently sent me a wonderful email about the baggage we carry around from our past: what your parents did or didn’t do, things you missed out on, things you couldn’t escape, but most of all the things that you can’t let go of now. I’m a great believer in moving forward, but it’s taken many years to unload my personal baggage.
Here’s Karen’s take:
Baggage is a funny thing. It’s heavy, but it serves a purpose. When I
first started traveling, I packed a lot. Too much. I came home with
clean clothes, unused accessories, and tired arms. Then I slowly
learned what to pack, and what to leave at home.
When it came to emotional baggage, I carried a lot. Much of it was
insurance/protection in the form of fat. Glorious, soft, warm,
comfortable fat. Other baggage included overstocked pantry cabinets
and overstocked clothes closets. I loved having full everything:
stomach, cabinets, clothes. Six months worth of toilet paper.
I loved my baggage - it was so comforting to have so many things, so
much safety.
Baggage has a cost. When I have 2 kilograms too much at the airline
counter, they charge me $50. When I sit hip-to-hip with someone in a
bleacher, I’m going to sweat. When I significantly overeat to hide my
emotions, it limits my physical abilities. These things are simply the
prices I paid to have the baggage that saved me so many times in my
life.
Just like a bellboy carrying the bags of a rich hotel guest, I honor
the baggage I have carried, because I know it pays off for me in some
way. My fat got me through my childhood. It got me through many hard
times as an adult. A few years ago, I found OO, and learned that I was
ready to learn a new way of packing.
In the past years, my baggage has become lighter. I cherish the old
baggage, because it is who I was, and I cherish the repacked bags,
because it is who I am now, and I cherish learning to pack even
better, because of who I will become.Karen
Down to 2 months of TP once in a while
What marvelous words: glorious, soft, warm, comfortable fat!
