Traffic was so bad today, Raquel came in late. We almost gave up on seeing her. Considering the time, we didn’t want to do yoga; we wanted to talk more about her boyfriend Cavanagh. The previous day was his birthday and earlier that day, we saw him on Facebook: TED recognized his work and he gave a speech at a TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference.
You could see the pride written all over her face. As we talked, I went on FB to show Gert, the Facebook posts on him. Fran and I had already seen it. Looking at the pictures a second time, Fran now noticed the woman standing beside Raquel and her man, and she screamed.
“I know that woman! Renée! OMG! How do you know Renée?” She asked excitedly, like she had just won a small fortune. Raquel was all smiles.
“This is too much! This can’t be real Ms. Frances! That is Renée, Cavanagh’s mom!”
What are the odds of such coincidences? Remember similar connections made in earlier entries?
Fran told the story about how she went to college with Renée in the eighties and she remembers her having a little boy back then.
“That was Cavanagh!” Raquel blurted.
Fran described Renée’s home and places they used to hangout back then and Raquel confirmed that she still lives there and those places were still in business. Renée and Fran majored in political science and attended the same classes for three years at Texas Southern University.
We all marveled at how our paths had interwoven, further reaffirming that our meeting was ordained by the universe itself. Raquel gave Fran, Renée’s cell number, and I can happily tell you that two old friends are now joyfully reunited.
If we had any misconception that we would not be having class today, we were totally wrong. With thirty minutes left on the clock, Raquel managed to squeeze in thirty minutes of yoga. However, before we began, Kimmy shared some sad news. Okay…not so sad news. Kimmy got a job.
After almost a year of unemployment and unrivaled bliss, the wheels of employment decided to rotate for Kimmy, and she could no longer continue yoga with us. It was a bitter-sweet day for us. Class was low-key and mellow and at the end of it, Raquel thanked her for allowing her share the journey toward peace with her.
All that now remained was three sisters determined to snatch happiness by the balls. Losing Kimmy was a blow we hadn’t expected, least of all the effect it would have on us. So in a somewhat semi depressed state, we all said goodbye that day, hoping nothing happens to take anyone else away.
Once again, I suppose we were missing the point of this happiness thing. The whole idea was to claim happiness, regardless of whom or what accompanies or in this instance, who no longer accompanies us. Fran wasted no time to reminding us of this fact and we were thankful she did.
As we journeyed home that day, I realized that ever since we started yoga, my physical health was improving and not just in relation to my weight. My ailments and preexisting conditions were getting better and somehow, my coping mechanism was also improved. My biggest area of improvement was my mental state.
All the affirmations and mantra Raquel taught us, was not only working, but working well. The old me, was no longer dominant anymore. We were evolving creatures and definitely for better.
Later at home, I chatted with Bubb over the net and she reconfirmed my new predisposition all over again. On the note of loss and losing Kimmy, she joked about Fox River days… that was what private university was to her. She used to wonder why she was wasting her time studying Pharmacy, when all she ever really wanted was to write poems and stories. I laughed, joking that it was a fall back plan for when writing doesn’t pay the bills. Bubb laughed, and said writing will always pay the bills Dotta, I do this to make the parents happy.
Her response was so poignant, I did not say anything for a while, then I smiled and replied, true Bubb, very true. She was a typical example of being strong in weakness. In doing something she did not really want to do, she not only made her parents happy as she said, but proved to me the real meaning of confidence and worth. She knew writing would always pay the bills, and I knew then exactly what she meant by that. It did not really matter what material gratification she would attain by following her passion, the greater reward was in the following. That was after all the rationale behind the affirmation in the first place.
As I said goodbye, I nodded in agreement to words, here I was again, learning from a babe.