CHIParenting

(ABOVE: Andy and kids on Pensacola Beach over Christmas Vacation; Tiana gardening; John Andrew lego-ing; Kalina making "hummus" which is really compost for her garden)

Chi-Niki
The book I am reading right now on running makes me want to "chi" (read: energy force) my entire life. ChiRunning (Danny and Katherine Dryer) takes all kinds of runners and focuses their energy into the least resistance and most beneficial way to log miles. Not being naturally inclined to run (I'd probably rather argue with a bear than flee if faced with one in my path), this book has been life changing for me. Instead of ending a run spent, sore and ready for a "hover round," I can't wait to run again. I actually wake up EARLIER to do this (and I am NOT a morning person.) I thought to myself this morning, what if I had the same energy parenting through a no-nap meltdown (meaning when either myself or Tiana has not gotten her nap and is therefore less reasonable than otherwise is the case), or to get the chi flowing during clean-up time? I'm not sure exactly how all of the focuses transfer from running to parenting, but I am working on it.

In running, it's all about your posture, making a "column" that is straight and aligned from your head through your torso and visualizing yourself like a needle in cotton (i.e. your spine inside your body). I suppose parenting is a lot of posturing, except maybe we are the cotton around the needle. The other concept that has been tremendous for me is just letting gravity propel my run, instead of pushing back against it. In this way, you accomplish the same goal of running, but you are not fighting force with force. Certainly, this seems like a useful concept when approaching parenting. I have certainly had days when the force of my will has met the force of one of our kid's wills and I have left sorely defeated. What I think I still have to figure out is how to motivate using the least force and optimizing the gravitational pull of the kids.