I started doing yoga in March. Sure, my arms are a little
more toned, and my core is a little stronger, but I've stayed in it for the
mental benefits. More often than not, the difference between a good day and bad
one is whether or not I made it to yoga. This was made clearer to me during a class
I took last week. At the end of class, after we eased into this pose, the
teacher instructed us to let go of something we were holding on to with every
exhale. I thought to myself, "Well, this shouldn't take too long."
However, 17 breaths later, I was still breathing out resentments,
disappointments, and insecurities I wasn't even aware were still hanging
around.
The protagonist of Susanna Daniel's novel Stiltsville also
grapples with letting go. At the novel's beginning, twenty-something Frances
travels to Miami for a college friend's wedding. After one of the guests invites
her to a house standing on stilts in the middle of the bay, Frances not only
falls in love with the ocean, but she falls in love with the house's owner
Dennis. Soon after, she gives up her life in Georgia and moves to Florida to be
with Dennis.
Frances and Dennis marry. Frances has a baby and falls in
love again...with motherhood. However, after several miscarriages, she has to let
go of the idea of her daughter having siblings. They continue to travel to the
stilt house on weekends. Occasionally leaving Margo with relatives, they host
friends at the house. But one weekend, a flirtatious guest leaves Frances wondering
if her marriage will last.
Frances and
Dennis stay together as Margo grows up and leaves for college. Now an
empty-nester, Frances takes up tennis. And the attentions of her tennis coach.
Another near indiscretion is avoided when Frances must comfort her daughter after
a tragic incident at her college.
More years pass. Frances
watches Margo marry, and finds out Dennis has a debilitating illness. Faced
with his death, Frances must decide if she is willing to let go of her life in
Miami once he has gone.
This is a story of a marriage. And as with all marriages, it
never hurts for the main players to breathe deeply every once in a while and
let go.
2 comments:
Sounds like a great book- thanks for the recommendation- and the encouragement to get back to yoga. I quit going over a year ago, and still think about going back. You go every day?
Good to hear from you! I try to go to a 5:30am class every morning (M-F). I don't always make it, but when I do, I never regret it. I need to catch up on your blog :)
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