Monday Inspiration: Dent the Universe

By Toni Carey
(@toni_carey/@blackgirlsrun)

I am not a morning person. Never have been. Trust me, I've tried, but my attempts to take advantage of the pre-dawn hours (whether to run or get in some quiet time), have usually resulted in me being a chronic snooze button pusher. I tried.....and I more often than not, failed.

This morning I was scrolling through Instagram and I came across a post by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson." 

Seems crazy but the only "quiet time" I have to get my work done before I go workout and then go to work is between 3-5am daily. Like most of us, once I start my day and walk out my door, life becomes extremely busy and loud. 3-5am quiet work time is one of my anchors. You may have to step out of your comfort zone to find your anchor like this, but it becomes a powerful tool once you do. Plus, it also helps us make focused smart decisions and helps us block out the noise we all deal with on a daily basis. It's crazy, but remember the crazy ones often dent the universe;). Let our denting commence. #FindYourAnchor⚓️ (luv coming downstairs at this hour and our Frenchie, Hobbs looks at me like "what in theeeee f*ck is wrong with you)

A post shared by therock (@therock) on Mar 6, 2017 at 4:12am PST

First of all, I'm totally feeling his Frenchie's, Hobbs, reaction. 3 a.m.??? What, the what??

But after letting his words of wisdom sink in, there's a few things I walked away with:

You may have to step out of your comfort zone to find your anchor
Running has always been my anchor and it most certainly took me out of my comfort zone in the beginning. Wait, what am I saying?? It CONTINUES to take me out of my comfort zone. 

But, it was the thing that helped me sort through break-ups, disappointments, losing jobs and general life changes. I could ALWAYS go back to running to give me the peace and space to reflect, re-group and catch a second wind to jump back on the proverbial horse.  What is your anchor?? What can you ALWAYS come back to?

You Need to Create Space to Block Out the Noise
These days there is SO MUCH NOISE. From social media, to the news, heck, even our circle of family and friends creates noise. It's hard to be in tune with that little voice inside you (your intuition) or to think clearly when there's literally so much chaos going on around you. Unfortunately, we can't just pack up our stuff and head to the mountains to leave it all behind, but we can give ourselves the space to find quiet, whether that be during a run or with meditation. As the rock says, " [space[ helps us make focused smart decisions and helps us block out the noise we all deal with on a daily basis.

Dent the Universe
Ya'll know I'm rebel so I was all over this "dent the universe" quote. I was like "YASSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!

"Without getting too deep, the only way to improve this world is by going against the grain. I mean, this is so true and relevant for SO many things! But, specifically, when it comes to health and wellness in the black community, it takes all of our collective actions......many, many dents in the universe..... for us to see generational change in our communities' health AND the way we think and approach health and wellness. By you just reading this blog post, starting and/or continuing your running journey....YOU ARE DENTING THE UNIVERSE. You are literally telling the universe, "Hey! I see you. I hear you. But, I'm deciding that I want a different outcome for my future and for future generations!" How powerful is that!! 

There's a reason why The Rock is so successful. He's busy denting the universe! And guess what. I want to be successful too. Instead of continuing to tell myself I'm not a morning person, I'm going to continue to live outside of my comfort zone and find ways to dent the universe too! It may look/sound crazy and even if I fail.....multiple times, it's worth the effort. Each attempt just makes the dent bigger and bigger. 

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