Just a heads up, yes, this blog post includes the phrase “Part 1.”  Just a hunch, but I’m guessing I’m going to come back to this overall concept one day so I’m going to leave this open ended…  

Isn’t interesting how we each have the ability to choose the lens through which we view the world?  Events and things happen all the time.  In of themselves they’re neither good nor bad, they just are.  The context and flavor are added by us and are entirely up to us.  Sometimes we find an event as being tragic and sad because that’s how we’ve chosen to see it.  Often times we don’t even realize it’s a choice, it’s more of a default that our brain goes to.  Our brains can process things more easily and quickly when we allow them to go into default mode and categorize the event without our putting thought into it.  The beauty to this is that we always have the ability to choose a different perspective when we view a specific event.  It is wholly up to us to determine how we see an event.  Good or bad, happy or sad, awesome or tragic.

The reason I am thankful for this awareness today is due to news from one of my favorite places in the entire world, the Champagne Ponds in Kapoho Bay on the big Island of Hawaii.  An incredible slice of nature in which the pools alongside the ocean are heated to bath water like temperatures due to geothermal activity.  In them you can snorkel, chill, and find so many awesome species of ocean life from sea turtles to eels (the inspiration for my tattoo) to puffer fish and everything in between.  They were nothing short of amazing.

When we went on our trip to Hawaii we rented a house with one of the many interconnected pools right in the backyard.  Our first morning in Hawaii I was up before sunrise and floating in the beautifully warm water.  Throughout the week much time was spent just relaxing in those pools.  I swam closer to a sea turtle than I’ve done since and saw so many beautifully colored fish and eels.  As I think about it I can feel my shoulders relax and drop along with my heart rate.  It was so relaxing to just float in that water.

Today those beautiful champagne ponds were completely swallowed up by the most recent lava flow.  Within 24ish hours they were just gone, vanished, disappeared as though they never existed.  Now there’s a flow of lava that’s filled them all in, taken all of the houses with it, and it now pouring into the ocean.

As one could imagine my initial feeling was one of deep loss.  One of my favorite places in the world was gone, never to return.  No return trip.  No chance to show the boys one of the things I was so excited to show them when we take them to Hawaii this December.  No way of ever experiencing the relaxing sensation of floating in the warm waters.  I felt great loss and sadness.

My mind quickly realized the trap I was falling into and I knew I had to look at this through a different lens.  I had to view it with gratitude and see it as something positive.  The damage had already been done, no point in allowing myself to hurt and cause more damage and pain.  With that in mind I quickly started thinking about all of the things I was grateful for in this event.  Here are some of those I came up with:

• I’m thankful for having experienced the Champagne Ponds in the first place.  I know the sensations I felt, I have the memories of that bliss, and I took the opportunity while it was present and savored every moment.  No lava flow can ever take that away.
• I’m thankful for the reminder of the sheer awesome power of nature.  Seeing videos of the lava taking everything in it’s path is a wonderful reminder of how small we all truly are in the big picture.
• I’m thankful for the reason to have a great conversation with my boys.  When we talked about it they were both quick to point out how lucky I was to have been there before it was gone.  Dominic reminded me that it’s also pretty cool when you think that I was able to see something incredible there once and now there will be something else amazing to see in it’s place – the world’s way of constantly changing up the scenery for our enjoyment.  Gavin pointed out how cool it was that the island is getting bigger so there will be more to explore.  Right on boys!
• I’m thankful that Becky didn’t let me up and leave to move there like I wanted to back in 2013.  It would have been an awesome 5 years of living there, but choosing my perspective would have been way more difficult if our home was swallowed up or worse.
• I’m thankful for friends with common mindsets.  After texting everyone the news Katie sent the following, “That makes me so sad, but grateful at the same time that we got to experience it.”  She hit the nail on the head!  It’s great knowing that I have friends who also can take something and find the positive in it.

Of course I wish the Champagne Ponds were still around, they were incredible!  That said, The Big  Dude Upstairs had other plans and I’m going to roll with them.  Today I’m grateful that I (and all of us) have the ability to choose the lens through which we choose to see the world.  When I use that gift correctly I’m continually surprised by the joy I find all around me…  even in the darkest of events.

Thanks!!!

Earlier this morning I’d looked at the calendar and was reminded of everything going on last June 4th.  Dominic’s soccer team had just about wrapped up their season and had a great game in Madison followed by a huge party at one of the parents’ house of one of his teammates.  I was going to call my dad, but it was getting a little late after the party and I was a little worn out.  Thinking nothing of it I figured I’d call him on my way home from work on the next day.

At about the same time my Uncle Tom Kreiling reached out to Dad and had a wonderful long phone conversation with him.  Uncle Tom told me about how much he’d enjoyed the time on the phone with Dad catching up and shooting the bull like brothers do.  When I was getting up and moving this morning the memory of talking with Uncle Tom about his conversation with Dad was top of mind and I smiled thinking about how great it was that they had that time to talk with each other one last time.

Out of the blue my Uncle Tom called me today.  We shot the bull for quite some time and had a wonderful conversation.  There were jokes about Nick and I going camping this weekend.  There was a lot of catching up on what we’re both up to.  There was time spent talking about vacations past and upcoming.  There was also a lot of talk about that last conversation with Dad.  It felt so awesome to be talking with him about it.

Something about talking with him just felt so right that I had goosebumps at times.  In some ways it was like I was talking with Dad.  In other ways it helped me get my head wrapped around what had happened at this time last year.  And, just like when talking with Dad, Uncle Tom even had some good advice that I’m going to take!  All in all it was comforting and greatly appreciated.  It’s something that I’ll have to make sure happens a little more often than I have in the past.

Thanks!!!

 

 

 

After Dad had passed away the Express team in Winona got together and bought a very generous gift card to Trees Today Nursery. As luck would have it my Uncle Frank and Aunt Andrea had a very similar idea. Yesterday the family and I headed out to the nursery and picked out our new tree, a Brandy Wine Maple 🍁.

Funny how things work out isn’t it? Later in the day I realized that we were shopping for the tree almost exactly one year after I’d last talked/texted with Dad. Not sure how that worked out so perfectly, but it seemed pretty right and more than a coincidence.

Last night we got the tree planted in our yard and today we did a little temporary landscaping to help keep it safe while it takes root.

Becky’s already started calling it “Pete” which cracks me up for numerous reasons.

For me it’s a wonderful reminder of Dad that we’ll have in our front yard for as long as we live here.

Thank you to everyone who helped give this amazing gift, I’ll think of all of you and your thoughtfulness and generosity every time I’m looking at it and thinking of Dad.

Thanks!!!

Just over six years ago I was hiring a new Staffing Consultant for our Medford, WI office.  I interviewed one of the candidates in the La Crosse office and was very impressed.  The candidate had just graduated with her degree and was looking for the first step of her career.  Talking for well over an hour we quickly hit it off.  It was very clear she was intelligent, driven, was full of potential, had a growth mindset, and was full of grit.

The opportunity I was offering wasn’t the most attractive role ever – move two and a half hours further from your family into a community of about 4,000 people, and start in an entry level role.  She understood the growth potential and saw the vision I had for where she could launch her career to off of this first step.  We were in agreement and the rest is history.  Little did I know that I was in the process of meeting someone who would be an incredible teammate, a motivator, and an amazing friend who would have a large positive impact on my life.

And that’s how I got to know Jenn Davis.  Right off the bat she struck me as someone who would be a future leader and possibly a future business partner.  From her experience in the family business to her strong work ethic to her core values it was clear she’d been raised in a wonderful and loving family that instilled in her the things we look for in our teammates.

Over the years Jenn continued to grow with us.  She had several successes, some setbacks, and everything in between.  Regardless, she was always humble and open to learning how to keep improving.  This wonderful mix of a growth mindset and grit helped to propel her from one role to the next to the next.

Right from the start of our relationship one of the things I appreciated the most about her is her willingness to tell me when I’m wrong.  She never backed away from telling me very clearly and bluntly that I was starting to go in the wrong direction.  Jenn never did it in a way that was unprofessional or disrespectful, rather she always seemed to get it just right…  sometimes I needed a very direct response, sometimes I needed to be eased into it.  She always seemed to make the right call in that respect.

One of the things I appreciate the most about her though is how much she cared for me.  Jenn was always watching over me, asking me to seek help when I was overwhelmed, and making sure I was doing right by Becky and the boys instead of letting work consume me.  In spite of the work load and stress she had on her she was always keeping my well being in mind and helped me stay sane at work.  Jenn would always watch out for me and I’m so thankful for that.

So why am I blogging about Jenn today?  Jenn recently received a job offer that was an incredible growth opportunity for her and appears poised to take her down the next journey of her career.  While I’m sad to lose her I am happy for her and see how this could be the start of something very awesome for her…  Of course, all the while hoping the path will lead her back to our team on day 😉

Yesterday was the second day of work at Express without her being there.  The day went well and everything that was supposed to get done got done, but I could definitely feel the lack of her presence there.  I spent most of the day at the workstation that used to be hers, doing some of the work that used to be hers, and it reminded me of just how much she did for our team.

When I think of it that way I’m able to change my mindset and remember to be grateful for the opportunity we had to work together.  I’m thankful for interviewing that recent college grad half a dozen years ago, she a fantastic impact on my life and lives of my teammates.  Over her six year career with us she moved the dial and made us all better…  and that’s something I’ll be eternally grateful for.

Jenn, dude, thank you so much for all you’ve done and all you’ve given to our team, our clients, our associates, and to me.  We’re all better off for having had the opportunity to be in your presence.

Thanks!!!

To finish up our hiking award the scouts and a few brave parents went on a 3.5+ mile hike in Hixon Forest on the side of the bluffs. Not only did we have to hike it, but we had to collect garbage as a service project and then prepare and eat a meal on the trail.

The boys did an awesome job on the hike and did it way faster than I was expecting. True to being normal boys there was a lot of “rocket fuel” and “gas” to help propel them up the hills. We were also fortunate to have had today be the day that they learned about anatomy in school so there was plenty of entertainment!

It felt wonderful being out on the trails again, and while it wasn’t nearly as peaceful as when Becky and I would run on them together it was still very relaxing.

I’m super proud of how well each of the boys did, it’s been my pleasure to be their den leader for the past year. Not only am I thankful for them, I’m also thankful for the time I’ll get to spent with them next year in their last year of Cub Scouts.

Thanks!!!

My schedule today was pretty much jam packed from start to finish so when one of my teammates called I felt bad that not only was I not available to take their call, but I knew I wouldn’t have the opportunity to get back to them until much later in the day.

Later in the day I had a couple of minutes and felt the stress and anxiety of the upcoming month taking hold.  So many projects, so much to accomplish, and I made the mistake of looking at it as one huge imposing thing as opposed to bite sized portions that I know I can take on.  With that looming in my mind I was struggling and needed to take a deep breath.  I literally had my head in my hands for a moment as I mulled everything over and tried to give myself a pep talk, but it wasn’t quite working.  Just one of those moments of weakness that occasionally hit for a few moments.

Something clicked in my head and I realized that sitting here sulking wasn’t going to accomplish anything so I decided to start knocking off the tasks on my list to get myself out of this funk.  First on the list was to listen to the voicemail from my teammate and respond to her.  When I fired up her voicemail I heard a very chipper, upbeat and energetic voice leave the following message:

“Mike Kreiling, this is _______ ________.  I’m calling to give you a little motivation this morning because I feel like you always do well with us and motivation so I thought I would just pass the word on today.  I know you’re stretched pretty thin and have a lot going on for the month of June, but I know you’ll grit through it because you’re an awesome person and you do right by everybody and you’ll do well in June too.  I just wanted to say I appreciate you and you’re doing a very good job!”

I sat there and just took in her message.  After it finished I played it again.  On the second time my eyes welled up a bit, I took a deep breath, and I flipped the switch.  She was right, I’ve got this and I know how to get this all done.  Smiling ear to ear I changed my attitude and proceeded to have an excellent rest of the day.

Today I can’t even begin to explain how thankful I am for a teammate taking a few minutes to give me a pep talk to help me get myself back in the right mindset.  There’s no way she could’ve known the state I would be in when I finally listened to her voicemail, but she totally nailed and made my day today.

Thanks!!!

 

 

 

Becky had the foresight to get my bike tuned up and fixed last week and I’m glad she did! When I wrapped up a call for work after supper I was in the mood for some outside time. Grilling, cleaning the grill and setting up the sprinkler didn’t quite scratch the itch.

With Becky on a work call I saw the boys sitting around on the couch reading and had an idea. Let’s go for a bike ride to see how many turtles we could see! Of course I had to have some type of a gimmick to get the boys moving. 😁

Off we went and had a great time. We fired up some tunes while riding, went past the teenagers and water skiers at the beach, and saw ten turtles. Amongst the highlights were our short jaunt down the sandy dirt path and the feeling of swerving all over the blacktop like a kid. It felt awesome!

I am thankful for that time with the boys tonight, it felt wonderful acting like a kid again while spending time with my boys.

Thanks!!!

I know, the boys really do get along often, but like many things in life I sometimes get get frustrated and remember the times when they don’t get along much more clearly. While we were out on the river today there was one of those time when I just appreciated seeing the two of them spending time together.

While Becky and I were reading and relaxing Dominic and Gavin had tied a couple of floating emojis together and to the boat. They then proceeded to play a version of king of the hill until only one of them was still on the float. Watching them go at it was so much fun, they were giving each other a hard time and fighting hard, but in a very playful way that reminded me of a couple of bear cubs wrestling.

There was no blow out fight at the end, no frustration, no declarations of cheating or anything like that. They just went at it until they both decided it was time to do something else. Then they split off and did their own things for a while.

In the moment it was so much fun listening to them giggle and laugh while wrestling around like that. I still remember my brother and I doing things like that. Sometimes it was on the stairs so an aunt and uncle’s house, other times it was on our beds as we fake professional wrestling. Regardless of location it was always so much fun doing those types of things and actually enjoying each other’s company. Sitting on the boat today it was pretty awesome to see the boys doing the same and making their own memories.

Thanks!!!