Present Tense

I've always loved poetry. I even took up an elective in American Literature in the university. That was when I was exposed to Robert Frost, Edgar Allen Poe, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and the likes. More than once I've had the goosebumps feelings when a certain poetry struck a chord in me. How could a few simple words put together be so beautiful, and meaningful?

This poem by Jason Lehman brought a little tear to my eyes when I read it this evening. It is tragically beautiful.

It was Spring.
But it was Summer I wanted,
The warm days,
And the great outdoors.

It was Summer.
But it was Fall I wanted,
The colorful leaves,
And the cool, dry air.

It was Fall.
But it was Winter I wanted,
The beautiful snow,
And the joy of the holiday season.

It was Winter.
But it was Spring I wanted,
The warmth,
And the blossoming of nature.

I was a child.
But it was adulthood I wanted,
The freedom,
And the respect.

I was twenty.
But it was thirty I wanted,
To be mature,
And sophisticated.

I was middle-aged.
But it was twenty I wanted,
The youth,
And the free spirit.

I was retired.
But it was middle-age I wanted,
The presence of mind,
Without limitations.

Then my life was over.
And I never got what I wanted.

~ Present Tense by Jason Lehman (1989) ~

Classy And Fabulous

Coco Chanel said "A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous."

You can be fabulous in your charming personality, your blessed good looks, your expensive makeup and shoes. But to be classy, this is the tricky one. If I can only offer one advice, read. Read extensively. Not just the heavy duty scientific encyclopedia or anthropological thesis, read everything and anything. Read the Financial Times, read Vogue, read an autobiography, read the history of the World Wars, read a Marian Keyes, read a Paolo Coelho, read the Bible, read the Atlas, read ColdFusion for Dummies, read modern poetry, read trivial facts.

Read. Extensively.

In that way, you'll be able to strike up a conversation with anyone. And that classy side of you will show through the subject knowledge, and the way you speak about them. You will be confident in your self-worth, you have your own opinion on aplenty topics, you are able to carry your thoughts across in a smart and stylish manner.

You don't have to dress like a million bucks to prove you are classy. You don't have to speak like a lady-in-waiting to be classy. You do need a good brain to work that elegant side of you.

Read, girlfriends. Read extensively.
And be Classy and Fabulous.

Yoga

I went for my very first Yoga class yesterday evening. It was easier than I had expected. Love the Tree pose, Lotus pose, and all the exotic names the instructor used. Hell, I even like just saying "I just came from Yoga". (In fact I did. Bump into a friend on my way home and told him that. Like the sound of it.)

My limbs are aching so much today. The Yoga poses really stretch your muscles. I had worked muscles I never knew existed! The leg lifts were really difficult for me and my whole body was quivering with exhaustion just holding that pose for 20seconds. But when I feel the achy feeling in my abdomen, my back muscles, my upper arms and my calves and thighs, I knew I had a good workout yesterday.

For someone who hasn't exercised for the last two years, signing up for Yoga class is a major milestone for me. Why did I decide to break my exercise fast? Age. And health. As we get older, exercise is more important than you imagine. Oh well, you won't understand that until you realise you recover slower from an illness than five years ago, your paper cut takes days instead of hours to heal, your giggly tummy takes weeks to disappear even though they used to flatten after two days of dieting.

Also, I've been having a persistent upper backache for the last 10 years. Yes, a decade. It's time to do something about it. I'm confident the stretching poses in Yoga will help.

And every lifestyle queen needs tone arms and flat stomach to pull off those Cavallis and McQueens. Not to mention the healthy glowing skin after you work up a sweat. What better way to achieve them than some chi chi Yoga class?

I'm going to Yoga tomorrow. (I really like the sound of it.)