i believe life is a surprise

I watched an interview with Art Garfunkel last Sunday on that Sunday morning show. I don’t know what it’s called even. Probably just Sunday Morning. I looked it up, CBS Sunday Morning. I was close.

The interview was really interesting, as he talked about his time with Paul Simon. They have had a turbulent relationship over the years for sure. There was one thing though. At the end of the interview, he said, “I believe life is a surprise.”

I started thinking about how that is such a true statement. Life surely is a surprise. We don’t know what is going to happen in our lives. We can’t plan everything. We can’t control things as much as we like to think we can.

I started thinking about how life is a gift as well. I have met some really amazing people in my life. I have been a personal trainer and kettlebell instructor for over 7 years. Life is a surprise every day. Every day I learn something new about one of my clients. Every day there is something they are going through that I listen to.

I have a whole basket of memories from the past seven plus years. There has been good times and really, really sad times. We have been through so many things. Together.

I have been watching their kids grow up. I know their names. I know their birthdays. I know what kinds of food they like. I know their pets’ names. I know how many pets they have. I know what hurts them. I know what makes them happy.

I know where my clients shop. I know their insecurities. I know when they are feeling sad or happy. I know when they are feeling great or not so great. I know what makes them laugh. I love watching my group people bond with each other. I love listening to them laugh when they are training. After all, life is a surprise. Surprises every single day.

I’ve been there for extremely hard times. The death of a baby. It doesn’t get much sadder or harder than that. Life is a surprise. This mother, this wife, this woman is one of the strongest women I know. She does things on her terms. She does things her way. She follows her own rules. And really, there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. In fact, at her training session this morning, she and I and another client, were talking about that very thing. We don’t have to fit into the box or the parameters of what someone else says we should. Who are they to tell us how we should live or lives or what our lives should look like. It is absolutely okay to live by our own rules. I commend her and I admire and respect her.

We’ve been through so many life surprises. The things we can’t control. The loss of pets, the loss of parents, the loss of siblings and friends. Marriages and divorces. Sending kids to pre-school, elementary school, middle school, high school and college. Hoping they will be okay. Hoping they won’t struggle.

I have a lot of women clients and every single one of them has such an amazing presence in my life. I love getting to know them. I love learning about their careers. I love listening to them. I’ll say that again…I LOVE listening to them. I love they trust me with their most personal problems, their most personal life things. A catalog of life items. Not all of it is pretty. Life is a surprise. Struggles, triumphs, celebration, joy, loss, sorrow and unhappiness.

I often think that if I wasn’t doing this for a living, I never would have met all these wonderful women. I have awesome men clients too, but in this post the light is shining on the women.

There are so many things I would have missed. I love the surprises of this life. There are so many chapters I have been able to witness. I am so grateful and so thankful I am able to be a part of their book of life.

I want to thank these women for being kickass. I want to thank these women for not taking any shit. I want to thank these women for being strong. I want to thank these women for trusting me with their details.