Go Outside and Do Something Amazing

Last week I spent four days in Missouri...St. Louis to be exact...for an annual all-staff work conference. I went to St. Louis once as a child, to visit some of my cousins who jokingly referred to their new hometown as "Stinkin' St. Louis". And I must say...St. Louis hasn't changed much. It is a definite step up from our conference location last year - Detroit - and though St. Louis isn't anything special, I must admit that right next to the hotel at which I was staying, St. Louis did have at least one cool thing to offer: the Gateway Arch. 


Fortuitously, the weather in St. Louis was gorgeous all week. It was at least 75 degrees every day, mildly humid, with a nice breeze...basically, perfect weather that makes you want to stay outside all day long. However, I was stuck inside the hotel from 8am-5pm (sound familiar, all you 9am-5pm workers?). The first day of the conference, as we sat through session after session, we were teased by the view from our windows: the Arch reflecting the sun, people running through the park, and kids playing on the grass. NOT FAIR. 


Sure, I went outside for about an hour in the evening (had to be back inside for dinner!); still, I was sad that all the beautiful weather was being wasted. But then I did something amazing. The second morning of the conference, rather than going to the hotel gym, we were invited to partake in yoga...outside...under the Gateway Arch. Needless to say, it was incredible. I started my day refreshed, sun-kissed, and ready to seize the day...even if it was mostly inside. 


So, what's the moral of this story? For those of you who spend most of your day locked in an airconditioned building behind windows, make sure you spend some time outside. You'll feel happier, rejuvenated, and a little less bitter that you're stuck inside all day. Whether it's before work, during your lunch break, or right when the clock strikes 5pm...be adventurous, explore someplace new, or get to know an old place from a different perspective (upside down perhaps? in downward-facing dog?). Go outside and do something amazing. 

Obviously we had to do bridge pose underneath the Arch! I'm in the bright green top :)