"Flow with whatever may happen and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing. This is the ultimate." - Chuang Tzu
It's really hard to describe the feeling that comes over me after the acupuncturist (Jessica) sticks all of the pins in me and leaves the room.
As she is making me look like a voodoo doll, we usually chat about something, maybe to keep my mind off of the very tiny little pricks I feel. I was telling her about the half marathon, and she mentioned some crazy 10K she used to do in San Francisco called Bay to Breakers where you either HAD to dress in costume, run NAKED, or be heckled by the spectators. Apparently through every neighborhood different things are thrown at you! For example, through the Latin neighborhood they throw tortillas! I told her how I always feel like the needle she puts in the very top of my head is the funniest, and the one between my eyebrows stings the least out of all of them. She asked which ones sting the most, and I told her the one between my thumb and pointer finger only on my right hand, and the ones she was putting into me that moment on my ankles and tops of my feet. She said those are the two places in your body that are most sensitive to pain.
So today, I actually waited for her to go through the list of tunes on her ipod and found out that instead of the classical music I usually go with (because it's first on the list (listened to Yo Yo Ma last week)) there was Etta James! So I picked that and "At Last" was the first song to come on.
As I said, the feeling that comes over me as soon as she dims the lights and leaves the room is hard to explain. I lay there, perfectly still, utterly relaxed, with my hands on my tummy, and can barely focus on anything but the rhythmic rise and fall of my stomach as I breathe in and out. No other time do I feel so centered. It doesn't even feel like my hands carry any weight at all. The massage bed is heated, there's a pillow under my knees, and occasionally I lift my head up a little bit to remember that yes, indeed, I look like a pin cushion. It's almost as if I fall into a trance. Sometimes, like tonight, I'm completely aware of everything around me. Even the crying baby next door seemed to be in tune with Etta and didn't bother me at all. Other times I go into half-dreams. After 20 minutes that seem to go by extremely fast, she comes in to adjust the needles and make sure they're in place, and then leaves me for another 20 minutes. I wish it was closer to work so I could go in the middle of the day and come back completely rejuvenated.
She gave me some exercises to try for my foot and ankle now that they're starting to get a little stronger. She also recommended picking up a foam roller and having my brother look into a certain kind of tape to wrap my ankle.
I'm very excited after a detective-esque search to have found my McDavid ankle brace that I can wear tomorrow during the run. I want to stay up so badly and read some more of Time Traveler's Wife but I know I need my sleep. This book is really reeling me in. I love how it jumps from time to time, different ages, scenarios, etc. It's rare that I can read 50 pages in one sitting without getting restless or my eyes start drooping into a sleepy haze.
Long weekend #2 of 4 has begun! YES!
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