Finding my inner kid-self …

Last week I was at a good friend’s wedding and at the end of the evening we were talking about running.  She had a beam of light over her face, a full smile, and was giggling as she talked about running.

She said “Running is SO FUN! It makes me feel like a kid again.”

I gave a small smile and thought “Well, isn’t that nice…. certainly not the feeling I have when I run.”

This conversation took place pre- Sunday running group, before I had found my pace group and before I had bonded with the 4:15 group.  When I left her house, I felt a strange sense of jealousy- a pang in my heart that screamed I WANT THAT!  I want to feel like a kid again.  I want to radiate joy from every pore in my body and beam as I go about doing the things I want to do versus the things I should do.

Fortunately, for me, last Sunday morning ignited my inner kid spark.  I ran with the 4:15 group, we chatted as we ran and I actually enjoyed every step.  The same was true yesterday.  I loved the 16km run we did together.  For the first time in a LONG time I actually ran up a huge hill, versus stopping half way, catching my breath and cursing the very road I ran on.

It’s a bit strange how coincidental my last week has been.  The universe is screaming at me to really examine things in life.  I am trying to determine what it is that makes me feel full of life, to bring that kid sense into my daily life, and  to bring that into my career.

For example- I had this conversation with my friend (as noted above) about having that inner child feeling again.  On Wed. I was evaluating that conversation again and found a picture of myself as a 3 year old- wearing my spiderman t-shirt, Mr. Potato head glasses, and a red purse around my shoulder.  I posted this picture as my Facebook profile picture.

I want to remind myself  of my quirky-ness, uniqueness, and how it felt to be 3 years old.  On this same day, I received an email from a friend to attend a free workshop put on by life coach, Karen McMullen.  I attended the workshop last night and I was fully present throughout the entire session.  Karen is a tremendous facilitator and I absolutely loved learning about what she calls the Genius Zone (see Karen’s website for more details).  Karen also made the (coincidental) connection about being and living in your inner 5-year-old self!?  Wasn’t that exactly what my friend said at her wedding and what I had thought about ALL WEEK!?  Amazing really.

Karen said that as a 5-year-old we didn’t hit the snooze button when the alarm went off, we didn’t trudge our way to Kindergarten and go through the motions of the day, and we didn’t return home to just slump on the couch.  In fact, if YOUR 5-year-old was exhibiting these signs, you would most likely take him/her directly to a Psychologist.  Yet, as an adult we equate exhaustion with a full day,  sign that we had a busy day at work and deserve the break- in many ways we see this as NORMAL. However, Karen pointed out that our bodies are NOT meant to be exhausted.  We are meant to feel energized, awakened, excited, and curious.

Karen continued to point out that when we find the qualities and things that we love to do, that give us our passion imprint, the act of doing becomes effortless.  We are in the “zone”, eager, curious, excited, and connecting with our inner 5 year old spirit.  This connection with my inner 5 year old has recently been found in running- or more so the connection I have with others as I run.  As I continue to evaluate my 2010 goals I start to see that connecting with others while doing the things that bring me joy is perhaps where I need to start and ensure that my inner 5 year old is present in the choices I make each day.

Karen is hosting an upcoming (Thurs Feb 4th) tele-seminar relaying similar content but in a shorter format (only one hour, instead of two) : Here is the link to the event on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Victoria-BC/Karen-McMullen-Life-Coaching/129397996368#/event.php?eid=438620685440&index=1