When it appears - usually within the first 5-10 minutes - I'm reminded of my skill at ignoring reality. I have an almost unbearable dolore in my side! I should just keep going! Seems like how Donna Reed would behave if someone deposited her at a landfill. "Oh my, the landscape is so varied! Look at all the colors!" Or Rachel in Kingsolver's Poisonwood Bible who focuses on brushing her hair and upright posture, while her family and the entire Congolese village suffer from nutritional deprivation, snakebite, and general hardship of alive-ness.
The most remarkable thing about the side ache situation is that I know the reasons for side stitches and how to prevent them. If I spend 10 minutes (not 5) doing sit-ups beforehand, I can usually avoid the suffering. I've gathered that this has something to do with warming up my abdominal muscles or moving things around so my liver has room to breathe. Qualcosa like that.
So why not do the 10min ahead of time to avoid 30min of annoyance? Well, hmm, I think it is because I am a lazy creature. And again, excellent at ignoring reality, like the most disturbed characters in Donnie Darko. No, not Donnie, but rather, the inspirational speaker by day/porn deviant by night, Jim Cunningham (also one of Patrick Swayze's sleazier and most enjoyable roles). He is the epitome of the compartmentalized/tortured individual.
What I don't get is why it is easy to recognize unhealthy (jogging) behaviors in other people but not in ourselves. For example, if I had a dear friend who complained about side aches every time she went out jogging, I would tell her that she should stretch and do at least 10 minutes of sit-ups beforehand (this should sound familiar since it's review from above). Or, if I were Jim Cunningham and noticed a miserable young person stockpiling sick images and running a kiddie porn ring, I would probably say "You are a prisoner to your fear! Learn to love yourself!" But when it comes to me, ho ho! Just keep running and every now and then jab a palm into my side.
This works for a time, but it doesn't really make the pain go away. Today I found that if I concentrate on my breathing the way I learned in my PVI (personal vocal instruction) from J & M, I can work through it. Also if I do not talk or think or even think about talking or thinking about anything else, it abates a bit. I guess the most painful aspects of life need attention, and need to be accepted just like everything and everyone else. Especially poor Cherita.
No comments:
Post a Comment