Maurice Carlos Ruffin on Heavy Things

I love my body. Yes, throughout my life I’ve struggled with my weight and my body image. But I’m fortunate because I learned from my loved ones both how to cope (and not to cope) with the problems I haven’t quite figured out how to completely overcome. In any given year, I may run incredible distances or lift enormous weights or rise at 4:45 am to go to a spinning class. To quote Bjork, “I go through all this before you wake up so I can feel happier.” To be less cryptic, I move my body to decrease my anxiety. To be even more direct, I decrease my anxiety both so that I can live and so that I can write, living and writing being synonyms. I love my body. I love living. I love writing. Pieces like today’s post are one way I prove this to myself.