Combining Passions

Today is Day One of the 21 5 800 challenge. Since I don't speak "twitter" (even though I have one) I wasn't really sure what it was all about until a few minutes ago. The idea is, for 21 days, participants practice yoga 5 times a week and write 800 words a day.

This is chocolate and peanut butter to me, a sweet combination.

I often allow myself to get distracted when I have a few writing projects going at the same time. I open one file, only to think of something that might be perfect for another one, but hey, I REALLY should get this one done, as soon as I do a little research, and oh--what is that, how interesting...

Of course, time gets sucked into this multi-tasking nothingness with little but misplaced enthusiasm to show for it.

Yoga reminds me of the importance of staying present and focusing on the moment. If I am concentrating on grounding myself in tree, I can't concern myself with how I'm ever going to get into crane pose. In my writing, I need to remember to do the best I can with the more familiar work (short essays, blogs) in order for the words to flow easily. If I start to think about the difficulty with the more advanced project (novel), I am making myself struggle unnecessarily. Just as I may fall out of my tree, I may block my own writing with worries about something that isn't even happening yet.

So, for day 1:

Yoga: Gentle Yoga with Julie. Just the right amount of twists and inversions that I needed today-- very cleansing.

Writing: Some editing, but could have done better. Didn't meet the 800 mark (but, I didn't count, either). I'm giving myself a little lovingkindness in that respect--but tomorrow, back to work! I had a long overdue call from my sister, so my priorities shifted. I will at least have an Excuse Editor blog post done by tomorrow night.

Thanks for the idea, Bindu Wiles:)