my letter to the guy who got me into ben gibbard....
recently an old friend of mine, who at the time was more or less someone i had a crush on when i first moved to san francisco, contacted me on myspace. much more than the typical 'oh hi, how's life' bullshit, our correspondences have been pretty heartfelt and in genuine sincerity and interest for one another's well being. it doesn't sound like its been a good year for him. i kind of elaborated on my take on the ole 'get back in the saddle' adage. at first i thought it was kind of lame and silly, but he wrote me back saying how he really appreciated my words and that they were the best thoughts on life he's heard in a while. i thought there will come a day when i will need to take my own advice, so it made sense to post it somewhere that i can read it when that day comes.
time heals just about everything. the sooner you get back in the saddle the better. being someone who has taken many falls from actual and proverbial horses, i've really had to take the old adage to heart. basically,there are three types of falls from a horse. some falls are expected, and you can prepare for them. other times they are anticipated, and with the anxiety, you can't regain control of your ride, so down you go. and then still there are times when everything seems hunky dory and next thing you know you're flying through the air and have a face full of mud a few seconds later. it doesn't really matter how it happens or when it happens, if you're meant to come off, then that's what will happen. the longer it takes you to get back on the horse, the more damage you do to youself. it's ok to lay there on your back for a minute and make sure you can feel all your fingers and toes. it's alright to swear. hell, it's just fine to cry. sometimes all you can do is laugh as your horse is standing over you, looking down with a 'wtf r u doin?' look on his face. you just have to get up, brush yourself off, take a deep breath and show the horse you mean business once you get back on. if you lay on the ground and take forever to get back up, you're just lettin the horse get the best of you. sometimes you just have to grit your teeth as you ride through the pain. even if you go around the pen only one more time before you put the horse away, you just have to tell yourself that you were brave enough to face that fear, and you're strong enough to ride though it. just focus on the task at hand and the pain subsides long enough to get it down. you'll be sore in the morning, and a little anxious before your next ride, but things probably won't be the disaster that played out in your head. :)
time heals just about everything. the sooner you get back in the saddle the better. being someone who has taken many falls from actual and proverbial horses, i've really had to take the old adage to heart. basically,there are three types of falls from a horse. some falls are expected, and you can prepare for them. other times they are anticipated, and with the anxiety, you can't regain control of your ride, so down you go. and then still there are times when everything seems hunky dory and next thing you know you're flying through the air and have a face full of mud a few seconds later. it doesn't really matter how it happens or when it happens, if you're meant to come off, then that's what will happen. the longer it takes you to get back on the horse, the more damage you do to youself. it's ok to lay there on your back for a minute and make sure you can feel all your fingers and toes. it's alright to swear. hell, it's just fine to cry. sometimes all you can do is laugh as your horse is standing over you, looking down with a 'wtf r u doin?' look on his face. you just have to get up, brush yourself off, take a deep breath and show the horse you mean business once you get back on. if you lay on the ground and take forever to get back up, you're just lettin the horse get the best of you. sometimes you just have to grit your teeth as you ride through the pain. even if you go around the pen only one more time before you put the horse away, you just have to tell yourself that you were brave enough to face that fear, and you're strong enough to ride though it. just focus on the task at hand and the pain subsides long enough to get it down. you'll be sore in the morning, and a little anxious before your next ride, but things probably won't be the disaster that played out in your head. :)