Our May + Deep Learning

What better Mother’s Day gift than an actual family pic?! Dreamy living an hour & a half from the beach...

We were lucky enough to have the US Navy Blue Angels fly over one of our neighborhood grocery store parking lots during their Houston flyover several weeks ago, saluting healthcare workers:

The patriotism, the unity, the majesty - I cried. I always cry over beautiful displays like this! Esp. anything military-related, as my dad & brother both served in the Navy, and my stepfather was a paratrooper in the 101st.

I donated blood for the very first time on May 12th via Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center! I can’t believe I’ve never done this - I have no needle issues, & it went fast: 9 min ❤️ It feels SOOO GOOD to have done something LIFE GIVING for others!!!

When I’m practicing yoga on the floor of my bedroom, look up from a supine pose, and see...

Monday night the 18th were the first in-person, not-online fitness classes I’ve taught in 2 months... It felt weird, reconciling my gut’s cry for caution with needing to keep my jobs...but these 2 Monday night classes are my only ones that have come back in person so far. They use no equipment (& no communal mats,) there are precautions (esp. limited members) in place, & I get cleaned up the instant I come home. I don’t know when I’ll choose to go back to classes regularly beyond teaching ...but I will say that after teaching virtually through Zoom, FB Live, & prerecording YouTube, there’s *NOTHING* that comes close to the efficacy, intensity, & overall impact of teaching again IN PERSON. ❤️ Nothing... Praying for everyone to safely find balance. (A snippet of my PiYo flow super sped up below)

Handling gym equipment (weights are my fave = ewww!) seems much sketchier than limited people widely spread out in a gianormous studio & fairly confined to their own, personal mats. I was (& still am) extremely wary - we’re still limiting our social contact, (only interacting with a few other known friend families,) wearing masks at H-E-B & Costco (the only places we really enter), etc. I’m just doing my best to find the correct balance for me.

SOOO THANKFUL SCHOOL IS OFFICIALLY DONE!!! Online was a breeze for Annelise, but we were surprised that it was hard for Will - not the content, but the discipline of doing it at home; then I realized it’s actually the same for *me*, too: I excel in the gym, but I absolutely loathe starting the same classes at home. Motivating me to do the same things in my house that I do so easily at the gym is torture. I get it... #happysummer

Back to the beach last Saturday with the kids & each of their BFFs - all 4 kids played in the ocean together ALLLL afternoon. If this is the key to teen sibling harmony, we’re moving to the beach! :-D (Each kid has a best friend whose family we know has also been taking quarantine seriously, so we feel safe including them in our bubble of contact.)

I wish I had posted all this earlier last week; I wish that I could just end this post here with all these happy things, but that would be irresponsible & inaccurate. Bailey & I walked for Ahmaud Arbery on his bday, May 8th:

I wish that would’ve been it... I find myself remaining quieter than I possibly should on many things that I feel passionately about, mostly because I don’t want to deal with the negativity and partisanship that will inevitably come from those who disagree = talk about the definition of privilege!!! I’m not a good representative in the heat of the moment for the causes my heart champions - I get too defensive, emotional, & completely shut down. But I am a staunch ally for all people who feel marginalized, and I have spent this last week & a half continuing to listen, learn, and support all of my black & police officer friends. My maid of honor (who is truly more like my sister) has been a deputy sheriff for over 20 years now & has served on riot patrols; I am educated to the gills with so many incredible black resources; I was a sociology minor in college & shared powerful experiences alongside incredible black professors; the tiny North Carolina town I grew up in also went through five days of race riots in 1993 (the national news came! Jesse Jackson came!) and living through that had a profound impact on not only me, but certainly every kid in my high school, those being such formative years. So I haven’t been blind to these things since middle school. But now what? I want to find the balance of responsible action without playing “white savior” or “performative ally” and I find that the most challenging. What about you? What do you feel led to do next?

I could share 1,000 things I've dug into lately, but I don’t want to overwhelm, so let me share a few to start. As much as I already knew, I’ve still gained so much perspective the last week & a half. Please take the time for these:

This has NOTHING TO DO with race, politics, etc. It’s just clear insight on what literally happens in our brains when our core beliefs are challenged: Believe

The only way we learn & grow, y’all, is to be open to having our beliefs challenged. So in the spirit of learning & gaining new perspectives:

“My White Friend Asked Me on Facebook to Explain White Privilege. I Decided to Be Honest” by Lori Lakin Hutcherson

Trevor Noah’s thoughtful explanation of complex social issues, esp. re: Amy Cooper knowing how to use the system, making it clear that we all do understand racism, and also talking about societal contracts:


One last thing for now... precious friends, as we ALL continue to learn & grow together, let’s *not* respond with “all lives matter” when someone says “black lives matter.” OF COURSE ALL LIVES MATTER. ❤️ No one would ever dispute that. But the point is to focus attention on what needs help right now:

Need a biblical analogy? Luke 15: the Parable of the Lost Sheep

I promise this blog isn’t turning into a preachy platform – it will always be just a place where I share what’s going on with me & my family; but this deep learning *is* what’s going on right now, and what’s the point of learning to then just keep it to yourself? I’m ready to get a little more comfortable with being uncomfortable.