Day 2,044

I’ve often mentioned how interesting the timing of so many things in life are. It seems as if I almost can’t help but accidentally stumble into a right answer, sometimes even before I knew I was asking a question! Through a bit of research on a different topic I happened across a book and the code it contained with an online strength and leadership assessment. As I was digging into retention and engagement I found this little treat which really opened up a new path for me. Within a short period of time I was knees deep into a treasure trove of information which will help me out in multiple directions.

One of the reasons I have a passion for learning is the opportunity it may provide in the future. I never know when a nugget of knowledge from a past lesson may come back to help me out in a future moment. When it does I’m so pumped and grateful for it. Even if I don’t utilize a new lesson right away in the moment I know it is floating around somewhere in my gray matter ready to be grabbed when the timing is right.

Yesterday I missed Dominic’s band concert because I was in Madison for Gavin’s soccer game. Thanks to Becky I was still able to enjoy the concert on TV tonight. Dominic and I loaded it up on the living room TV and watched it together. It was pretty sweet having him right there to point out the things I should be watching for and listening to. Not only did I get to watch and hear the concert, but I also got the behind the scenes version which was awesome! I really appreciate Becky recording the concert for me to watch.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,043

It feels more appropriate to hand write today’s blog first rather than type it. Going along with the peacefulness of the woods, the sound of pen on paper and the lack of a screen felt much better. My handwriting is still slow and sloppy, but it is much more in harmony with today’s blog.

Inspired by the book I read yesterday I loaded up an excellent next read from the same vein – Forest Bathing by Dr. Qing Li. This book gets into research conducted on why we see so many benefits from spending time outdoors. Dr Li cites several studies showing the medical, mental, and emotional benefits of being outside. One point in particular I found to be very interesting was showing how the emerald ash borer has played an unexpected role in the deaths of over 1,500 people in the US. Crazy!

As I read I see over and over again the reasons I enjoy spending time outside in the woods. Each sentence fuels my desire to get outside and spend ever more time away from screens and indoor lighting. I haven’t found a way to be outside more during the work day so I know it won’t be as long as I would like… yet. 😉

This morning Becky and I had the opportunity to run the majority of our twelve mile run through the marsh. We were surrounded by so many different types of birds, all of which were talking to us almost constantly. There were frogs chattering away in the background while rabbits and red squirrels ran on the trail ahead of us. The trees were starting to bud out and we saw a couple of flowers. All throughout the bluffs loomed in the background with mist slowly rising from them. So much green, so much nonhuman life, and almost no sounds other than those created by nature. Perfect!!!

Reading about being in the woods and then being in the outdoors… What a wonderful way to spend a Sunday!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,042

With a schedule change due to weather the majority of the day was spent at home. Throw in a sore heel and I wasn’t up for too much moving around. This meant some couch time so I reached for an awesome book I’d recently ordered.

A couple of weeks ago Becky sent me a text about this book:

As soon as I read the details I knew she was right (as usual 😉). The book arrived while we were gone and I just got it on Thursday. With the bonus quiet time today I was able to read the entire book and it was more insightful than expected.

Long story short (because I need to get to sleep so I’m ready to run tomorrow) the entire book increased my passion for spending time outdoors and helped me better understand some of the reasons why. Throw in some wild facts and recent research and I was like a kid in a candy-shop.

Bring on the non-soccer weekends, I’m ready for some camping!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,041

Thanks!!!

Day 2,040

Life is a series of choices and trade offs quite frequently. The easiest route to take is the one of habit, the well worn path, the old reliable. Once in a while the right decision requires jumping out of the rut. There may not already be a path there and the travel will be more difficult, but it is the right decision.

This may sound a bit crazy, but writing this blog has, in some ways, become the rut I need to pop out of. This evening is a case in point. Gavin’s track meet went way longer than it should have (4 full hours), and though he did very well it threw off our plans of calling it a relatively early night. By the time we’d finished supper it was already a little after 9:15 and I was planning to go to bed to blog and go to bed. I had a long blog mentally written and it was going to take a while. Meanwhile, we’d just gotten to one of my all time favorite episodes of Seinfeld, both Dominic and Gavin wanted to watch one more episode, they were both in laughing and talkative moods, and it had been a week since we’d spent time together. Rather than write the long blog post I stayed up and had a very enjoyable 21 minutes of laughter with them. That previously mentally written blog will wait another day. I’m way too fielder now and need to crash.

I’m tired and I’ll likely wish I’d slept more when my alarm goes off early tomorrow morning. But I know I made the right call. The past we gave me an opportunity to get extra sleep – I chose early bed on vacation rather than late nights – and the will help me power through tomorrow.

Trade offs and decisions – I’m thankful for making the right one and for getting extra laughs with my boys.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,039

How on Earth could two decades have flown by so quickly while also being so completely filled? When I think about the length of time twenty years covers it seems like almost an eternity. When I think about the life I’ve lived within that 20 years I can’t imagine how we could have packed so much in.

Today Becky and I celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary. Twenty years ago were married in an incredible late-April snowstorm which was so intense it took out the power to the town it was in later in the evening. The day before I was wearing shorts, the day of we had friends helping to shovel the sidewalk to the church.

Throughout the past twenty years we’ve shared so many moments and experiences. The highest of highs, the lowest of lows, and everything in between. We’ve had time to experience life as a married couple without kids, having two kids, and now seeing the end of the boys’ time at home dwindling more rapidly than expected. There’ve been so many wonderful successes, so many dreams accomplished, and yet more are added to list more quickly than they are crossed off. Together we’ve experienced profound loss, setbacks, health issues, career challenges, financial stress, and so many other difficult moments. In looking back those moments made us stronger and seem to fade a bit from memory while the former gave us the strength to push through the latter. All of the moments experienced together.

When looking back I know my life is infinitely more joyful thanks to sharing the journey with Becky. She’s propped me up and been my foundation when I am weak and in pain. She’s motivated me to live grander and grander dreams while supporting me as I reach for them. She’s given me the difficult feedback and advice I’ve needed when I haven’t lived into the person I know I should be – but always in a loving, respectful, and kind way. She’s the first to celebrate my successes and always is there to bring an extra smile to my day – sometimes through no action other than just her sheer presence in my life. She pushes me through example to be a better person, to live a better life. Becky brightens my life in so many awesome ways.

Twenty years of our journey in marriage lay behind, who knows how many lie ahead. I cannot imagine anyone I’d rather spend an eternity with than her. While I push myself to be appreciative of and blog about something unique each day, there has not been a day in the past twenty in which I wasn’t thankful for her.

Here’s to the past twenty, the next twenty, the twenty after that, and then maybe even another twenty… May our travels be many, may the journey include the difficulties we need to grow while full of living our dreams and enjoying each incredible moment we are gifted to share together.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,038

The inspiration for today’s post comes from a handful of moments, interactions, and insights from the past handful of days. What’s interesting is that there was a common theme of the majority of them, a connection that I’m finally starting to come to grips with more than I have through the rest of my life… at least for the majority with the exception of a handful of moments.

After four and a half decades I’m finally getting to be more comfortable in my own skin.

For so long I’ve let labels, the opinions of others, and especially my own opinions and expectations of myself be the lens through which I’ve seen myself. In so many ways I have been the insecure kid who sits back and awaits validation of a job well done, of looking good, of doing “the right things” and wilts when my striving for that validation is absent.

I’ve stifled down much of my own being, my thoughts, and my ideas in being something I felt I should be in order to “fit in.” Rather than acting as I’d prefer I most often would live into “what I should.” All the while the sense of insecurity grew and grew like a snowball rolled off a large mountain.

What I’ve realized more and more is that I’m okay being me. I don’t need to be anyone else. The more I live into the real me the more joyful my life is, the more I can be joyful and brighten the lives of others. Rather than socialize with a ton of people, it’s okay for me to chill and read a book on my own. Instead of going out late and having several drink I can head to bed early, relax, and skip the alcohol. Why do the vacation someone else loves when the one I enjoy is so very different? I can be myself rather than who I feel like others expect me to be.

One of the beautiful reasons I so enjoy vacations is the way they create space for me to breathe, to think, and to take a new perspective. This vacation has totally lived into that as well, it’s been a wonderfully insightful time to pause and be okay with me, to enjoy time as me, and to relax and heal.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,037

Full disclosure, a specific streak of mine ended two nights ago after a run of 112 days and I’ve had a couple of Mai Tais this evening. 😉

Fantastic days for numerous reasons, but most begin with the extreme state of chill my brain has been in all day long. When I pause to think about it there are three life lessons learned/remembered today for which I’m very appreciative.

First off, I’ve got an epic quote from Gary Rogowski’s book, Handmade: Creative Focus In the Age of Distraction:

Everyone starts from a place of ignorance, if you forget your beginnings. If you forget how many mistakes you had to make in order to become the master you are, you will forget that the master needs the greatest trait in order to train others. If the master has learned well, he or she will emanate this quality. It is humility.

Next up, an insightful quote from Anne Lamott in her book, Bird by Bird:

This is our goal as writers, I think; to help others have this sense of – please forgive me – wonder, of seeing things anew, things that can catch us off guard, that break in on our small, bordered worlds.

Lastly, an insight learned from Becky tonight… Some of the best things in life aren’t things we have or receive, they are the things we give away.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,036

While reading on the beach this afternoon there were a line of clouds slowly heading our way. For a fleeting moment it looked like we would be spared, but we received a nice long dose of liquid sunshine. Sure, it was wet, but it was still plenty warm. Rather than fleeing for better cover we chilled under our little thatched roof sun umbrella. It didn’t cover all of us so we did our best to keep the rain off our faces and torsos.

The quiet the rain brought was a beautiful contrast to the ongoing background noise of fellow vacationers. The sound was soothing and made even better by the continued sound of waves washing against the shore. So peaceful and chill.

At one point we covered up a bit in our blankets. Becky got a nice little nap in while I chilled and enjoyed the sounds around me. Here’s a selfie I got of myself during the rain 😉

After a while the rain started to slow and people re-emerged. The stillness in the quiet of the rain while on the beach was something I won’t forget. How wild, I always hope for perfect weather on vacation and I’ve been so fortunate to have it so many times, but some incredible moments – like the stillness today – have been made specifically because the weather was anything but perfect.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,035

I’m still not quite sure how it happened, but I’d never read The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. In many ways I’m a bit disappointed in myself for not having picked it up before. The crazy sense of humor blended with some science fiction goodies was right up my alley.

Equally as surprising was my avoidance of The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. Becky had recommended it long ago and Gaiman is one of my favorite authors. I figured I’d read it at some point but it never quite was the right choice.

What changed that caused me to read both of these books? Oh, did I mention that I’ve read both of them in the past 36 hours?

VACATION!!!

One of my favorite parts of vacation are the extended periods of reading time. While the backpacking / hiking / adventure vacations are typically my jam, a beach vacation like this one is the perfect opportunity to get back and snuggle up with some good books. Two down in the past two days, a handful yet to go. I can’t wait!

Thanks!!!