Anna M. Aquino

            Years ago in my gymnastics days, I went to a gym for classes that would physically shove us further down into our stretches.  It wasn’t enough to physically hurt us too much; however it did cause some pain.  However it did make us get more flexible than we thought possible.  The moments of uncomfortable forcing were worth it in the end.  Our class got more limber as a result.             There are many moments in our life that are like that.  Circumstances can push us further than we want to go.  We are uncomfortable and complain in the moment, but later we realize how much the situation helped us.  Those moments can make us ready, able, and prepare us for times we may need the flexibility.              Many of you have heard my rubber band analogy before, but I th...

My family knows that I always joke that “This momma is not doing emergency room visits especially when we are out of the country!” We travel to Canada a few times a year to see my in-laws and kids are kids and have their share of accidents. We’ve had a couple times where I thought we’d end up in a Canadian ER but haven’t yet. Not that I wouldn’t go if we really needed it but going would create piles of paperwork that I would rather avoid if possible. This year however I was the one that I thought may end up in the Canadian ER. All women who read this will laugh in understanding of my clumsiness. I needed to shave my legs in the shower. It gets slippery in there. Put someone… anyone in a small space with slick surfaces that are being covered in water and give them a razor, there is bound to be accidents. I stood in the shower that morning with one leg resting on the wall at about chest level, and using the other one to support my weight. Water poured down all over me, and just for...

When I was young, I spent a lot of time taking gymnastics lessons. I wasn't going to be the next Gabby Douglas, but I spent my time in a gym. When I went to cheer leading all the floor work benifited me. I can remember the gym I trained at had these trainers who used to push us down lower into our stretches. We'd be stretching minding our own business and they'd come over and push us further in the splits. Laugh if you want, but that is painful! Then they'd hold us down in the stretch until a substantial amount time had passed. While it was easy to get irritated when they would do that, today I'm still pretty flexible for a woman in my 30's. Their pushing me to push myself further may have hurt at the time, but made me better in the long run. We all need people like that in our lives. The kinds of people that see more potential inside of you than you see in yourself. We need the kind of leaders that refuse to let you quit, and make you be more flexible...