Earlier this year, amidst the chaos of what felt like a great deal more than the usual stressors of daily life, a friend – sensing my struggles – sent me a card with the following message:
Stillness sharpens awareness.
Gratitude is alchemy.
And discipline is the difference
between what you want now
and what you want most.
Given my schedule, my first thought was that I could possibly pencil in a bit of “stillness” late next month… or perhaps the month after. And, as for discipline, if I’ve mastered anything, it’s my nose-to-the-grindstone embrace of delayed gratification.
But the phrase gratitude is alchemy stopped me in my tracks. If alchemy is the transformation of base metal into gold, what is it about gratitude that is likewise transformational? The question brought me back nearly fifteen years to my last visit with Ron Fletcher at his ranch in the Texas Hillcountry. He was 90, in failing health, and we both knew it was our last time together.
It was during that visit that Ron shared with me the contents and details of his will. In particular, he wanted me to see in writing, and to hear directly from him, that he was entrusting to me his life’s work. He made it clear that his legacy was to be in my hands and under my control. Ron Fletcher left a legacy of wonder which he entrusted to me for more than just safekeeping. He entrusted it to me to share with the world. His calm and measured faith in me to carry forward his remarkable genius was, and is, the honor of a lifetime.
And it moved me to tears.
The thought of losing him as a teacher, a mentor, dear friend and confidante – just when I needed him most – seemed impossible and overwhelming. I must have said so because I remember him taking my hand and saying, “Listen, dear girl, I wish I could tell you it gets better. But IT doesn’t get better. It’s YOU. It’s you that gets better.”
In the space of those sacred heartbeats that transformed everything, I came to understand the meaning and to know the truth that gratitude is indeed alchemy.
It changes everything.
In this season of thanks giving, may you be grateful most of all. And may you – by your gratitude – be transformed.
With gratitude,
Kyria
Director of Fletcher Pilates