Remember when you used to jump up and down as a little kid because you were so excited you couldn’t keep still? Wouldn’t it be great to feel that about life? To be so excited about the possibilities of what was to come that you found it hard to be still and get through the day? Like joy rising from the inside out. And rising so high that you felt like you were about to spill over…and that would be completely OK because you’re excited…life is exciting…and it feels amazing!
This is exactly how I’ve been feeling as I get ready to go to New York City for Oprah’s Lifeclass. Anticipation is not the word that I would use to describe what I am experiencing. With only 4 nights left to try to sleep in my own bed before taking off to the city that never sleeps, I find myself each night for the past week falling asleep with virtual lists of to-do’s to get ready and waking up with a smile that only reminds me that I am probably on the right road to where ever it is that I am suppose to go in life…or at least enjoying the journey. And right now, I’m on the road to Oprah. Invited by our OWN angel to go and attend both Lifeclass lessons in NYC was the trigger to the joy spill…but the joy has been building up for awhile…and now, with only days away…I’m a little “joy jumpy.”
Let’s get this out of the way. I’m a good traveler…no matter what others may say. I know the ropes of what to bring and to not bring, of what Starbucks order to get once past security and what “emergency snacks” to have tucked away in case you are sitting on a plane on the runway for 5 hours like I was one time on a flight from San Jose to Chicago. Back then, before there were “rules” of how long people could be kept on a plane before it was considered cruel and unusual punishment, airlines were so worried about losing their place in line or more so, losing thier paying customers, that they strapped you in and didn’t let go of you. Like a ride at Disneyland where the locked bar comes down and then, you can’t turn back. Then, 3 hours later you are cleared for takeoff for 60 seconds of roller coaster magic. Yes, this used to be flying. Now, they can technically only keep you for 2 hours. So, with emergency snacks, easy word searches and an IPod full of music that will get me though anything, traveling is a breeze.
Where the jumpiness is coming from is the joy. Over the weekend, in a heart to heart I warned my sister, “You know, I might cry when I see Oprah.” I felt like I owed her the warning because she would be standing next to me with a big smile and I didn’t want to take her off guard. She looked at me with her caring eyes of shared joy and sympathy and said, “What? You might cry? You can’t cry!” OK. Maybe she didn’t exactly say that but from the conversation she wisely told me that crying may not be the best first impression if we even get to see Oprah, let alone say hello. So, as I practice sounding brilliant with “Hello, it’s so nice to meet you,” I try not to think about the big picture. How Oprah doesn’t know this but she has known me since I was 18…just like I’ve known her. And in NYC…finally…on our third Oprah visit…we get to sit in the same room with her, soak in her sunshine and let our JOY spill over without judgment. We are going to Oprah’s Lifeclass. We. Are. Going. To. Oprah’s. Lifeclass.