Shower with cold water

I thought I had gotten used to showering with cold water this week, but today was rough.

After I put some face product on I washed a bit off my hands with cold water, and I suddenly began to dread taking my shower. The water was no colder than it has been, but I felt that I couldn’t stand it.

I was reminded of bathing my dog. Whenever I tried to drag him to the bathroom to give him a shower (yes, I shower with my beagle) he would resist and be terribly frustrating. Once he got into the shower, he’d shake and shiver and try to escape. It’s no fun.

But then sometimes I go up to him while he’s sleeping, pick him up, carry him to the bathroom and just shower him. He has no time to dread; he just stands there, blinking at me while the water rushes around him.

Today I let myself dread the cold water – though I consciously knew that it was no worse than usual. The mind is a pretty powerful thing, and I need to get a grip on it.

I guess I want to do this because it seems utterly badass. I’m a rebel, you see.

Mostly, it’s just part of me that wants to see how much I can stand it. The key to a cold shower is just to get over the mental block against cold water – it’s not going to kill you.

More than anything, really, I want to shower with cold water because I want to learn to 吃苦 “eat bitter” as the Chinese call it – take those things that are reall tough in order to get through it and reach a new goal.