Before I moved to Canada, Easter holidays started on Maundy Thursday and ended on Easter Sunday and they were spent between my grandparents' town home and at our beach property both located in Atimonan, Quezon (Philippines). These wonderful four days would be spent swimming, eating, playing, lounging around, listening to Beatles records, and of course, the traditional Visita Iglesia (church visit) on the evening of Good Friday. After 3:00PM on Good Friday, we were not allowed to have fun: no swimming, no playing, no listening to music, no noise. We all looked forward for Good Friday to end. On Holy Saturday, we were allowed to go to the beach and swim, then back to town again before dark. On Easter Sunday, we were woken up early, just before the church bells were rung, and when they started tolling we kids were instructed to jump as high as we could. My grandmother had a lot of superstitions, and this was one of them. Apparently, if we jumped high enough we would grow taller. Well, we eventually did, but I think it's because our grandfather was quite a tall man himself. It was the genes that did it and not the Easter Sunday high jumps.
So today, many years since those childhood summers, instead of the Easter Sunday high jumps, I stretched and stretched and stretched for 90 minutes. I haven't measured myself yet, to find out if I gained a few centimetres, but I sure feel taller since I started practicing almost two years ago. My posture has definitely improved A LOT. Today though, after a rockin' practice yesterday, I am tired and my arms felt like lead pipes. I couldn't hold them up after each set of Half Moon Pose, BUT I did manage deep side bends. And lo and behold, teacher J. thought I did a pretty nice backbend. Thanks, J.! I needed that!
Four more days to go. The finish line looms ahead. But the race does not end there. I will just be making a pitstop. I will keep going. How can I not when I just feel absolutely refreshed, energized, revitalized. 60 Day Challenge? Well, maybe.
Happy Easter, Mommy. I love you. I thought about you in class today, and your happy smiling face brought a choke to my throat and tears to my eyes. I miss you so, so much.
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