Ok, it wasn’t an actual fly. It was probably a small gnat that flew directly into my mouth and down my throat while I was out for a morning run. The air was warm on my skin, the light held a rosy hue and I could smell the ripening blackberries as I ran by. Idealistic, except for the gnat I just swallowed. “Deep breath, swallow a few times, let it go,” I coached myself. I did just that, not missing a beat.
A few years ago, the gnat would have totally derailed me. The first time I swallowed a bug on a run, I came to a dead stop. I coughed and sputtered, trying to expel the intruder from my throat. I writhed and gagged. It ruined my run and totally soured me on my lake route for a while.
Many miles and several surprise bug breakfasts later, I’ve learned that fighting it just makes it worse. Now I just see it as part of being a runner and enjoying the trail by the lake. Sure, I dodge the gnat swarms and clamp my mouth shut when I’m able to see them coming. But once a bug has taken the one-way path down my esophagus, I now accept it and let it go. Sometimes I’ve even celebrated it. Swallowing my first bug of the season means that it’s finally warm out, I’ve shed the layers of cold weather running gear, and I’m enjoying the height of longer runs and better daylight.
Swallowing the fly has become an important metaphor for me. On a daily basis, I’m faced with circumstances and outcomes that I don’t like. I can either choose to accept them and move on, or do the even harder work to find the gift in the negative situation. I can celebrate swallowing the fly.
You may be thinking that this is a load of crap. Swallowing a bug just sucks and there’s no way to find the gift in it. I understand the common sense of this approach. But then I think about how much time and energy I waste when I rail against something that I can’t change or undo. Where could that energy and attention go instead?
What am I missing out on while I’m gagging and sputtering about life?
The alternative is to choose to accept the situation and put my energy into something else. How do I do this?
Find the humor. Is there something funny about the situation that you can laugh about? This often helps me release my frustration so that I can mentally move on. A fly just flew straight into my mouth instead of all this open air around me. What was it thinking?!
Get curious. What questions does this situation bring up for you? What can you learn from it? I wonder how many bugs I swallow each year, and what the average is for runners.
Set your sights on improvement. What ideas does this bring up for next time? What do you want to try out instead? What do other runners do? Is there a way to cut down on my bug consumption?
Ultimately, its about believing that you will benefit from acceptance, rather than continuing to rail against that negative outcome. Once you really want to move on, you will.
So . . . what fly do you need to just swallow?