Katie Jay - NAWLS

Hi - I don't know if you all know about Katie Jay.   I am on her mailing list and this what was sent out this morning.  She is really good, inspiring and all that.  She is also from what I understand excellent re: cross transfer issues (that was a big issue recently on R&R).  It's a nice message and


How to Accomplish the Impossible: A Sparrow's Dilemma
by Katie Jay, MSW, Certified Wellness Coach
Director, National Association for Weight Loss Surgery
www.nawls.com   For reasons I have not yet completely sorted out, I
have found writing to be a chore recently. I have
been busy and tired (I'm sure I'm the only one in that
situation :o), and I have felt inadequate.   I have gotten many emails recently from people who are
really struggling. They are telling me about major
eating episodes: scoffing down sugar and staying in
bed, frequenting fried-food restaurants, and coveting
cauldrons of Halloween candy -- followed by a tremendous
amount of shame, sadness, and hopelessness.   Been there, done that.   But sometimes telling someone to "keep getting up"
feels inadequate. Too simple for such a complex
challenge.   I feel like the sparrow who wants to do the work of
an eagle.   An Aesop's Fable I read this morning tells the story
of an eagle who "swooped down on powerful wings,
seized a lamb in her talons and made off with it
to her nest."   Now, we must put aside our pity for the lamb, because
this is the way of nature -- all creatures must eat
-- and the eagle is just being an eagle.   For that eagle, latching onto the lamb and lifting
it was an easy task. But what about for the poor,
hungry sparrow. There is no way she could swoop
down and pick up the lamb with her inadequate claws.   Or is there?   In Aesop's Fable, the small bird swoops down and
sinks her claws into the lamb's wool, and gets stuck.
She can't lift the animal and she can't get away.   Many weight loss surgery patients must feel trapped
like that. We know what we want, we are trying to
get it, we are being brave, we are following in the
footsteps of people we admire, we are working very
hard -- but the lamb isn't budging.   The moral of Aesop's Fable is, "Do not let your
vanity make you overestimate your powers."   Not a bad moral. The story tells of how the little
bird is rescued from its entanglement with the lamb.
Its wings are clipped and it is made into a pet
for children.   That's not where I would have gone with the
story if I were Aesop!   I would have told the sparrow to call for help.
What one sparrow can't do alone, a host of
sparrows can do together.   Obesity is a disease of isolation, but the hope
lies in calling out to others who will share your
burden -- and in supporting others who are calling
out for help.   The sparrow might have felt embarrassed to call
out for help, but when she did, her fellow sparrows
learned a great lesson. Her brave actions helped
others realize that calling for help is a valid
option -- and that it works!   The moral of my story is this: "Do not let your
embarrassment make you avoid your best chance
for success."   Let someone, or a group of someones, help you
carry your burden.   **The Aesop for Children, Dalmation Press, 2006.

I like her moral!

Thanks for sharing,

Edie

Thanks.... that is great !!

CC

Thanks, that was enlightening....