Day 3,143

Growth:

When the going gets tough and things go wrong the same qualities are needed to win through as they were in the past — qualities of courage, resourcefulness, the ability to put up with discomfort and hardship, and the enthusiasm to hold tight to an ideal and to see it through with doggedness and determination.

Sir Edmund Hillary

Appreciation:

So much appreciation for all moms today – mine definitely included!

Today I’m also incredibly grateful for my sons having such an awesome mom as a role model, inspiration, friend, coach, teacher, and mentor. Their lives are so enriched by the countless number of ways Becky has impacted their lives.

Presence:

Nothing like the joy of being outdoors and moving on a sunny day in May (& likely any month 😉)! Today Becky and I got a nice walk in the woods early to give Leia some exercise and identified sixteen different types of birds (thank you Merlin app!). We got a wonderful family hike in during the afternoon. The evening was wrapped up on our deck as we read. So many awesome moments outside today!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,142

Growth:

Thank you YouTube for helping me with another lawnmower repair today! Nothing like the confidence of knowing I have all the answers I will likely need in a device in my pocket to help me take a deep breath and calmly start solving the problem.

Appreciation:

This evening was a first for us – dinner as a family with a couple of significant others along with. The boys each brought someone along and we had so much fun interacting with everyone. It was a little awkward at first but we all seemed to get over it quickly. So surreal to experience a family dinner like this, but also so much fun. So glad we were all able to get together like that and I’m looking forward to doing it again soon.

Presence:

I’m still glowing over the moments and memories shared last night as we watched the northern lights! Seeing them as a family. Driving to the park on the end of the island to see the spectacular purples and pinks and greens. Walking for hours with Dominic while looking up. The random conversations with strangers who were also taking them in. The incredible sense of shared awe. Awesome!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,141

This, right here, shared with my family:

More details to follow tomorrow, time to crash tonight!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,140

Growth:

Each day, each interaction we have with others, we have a choice in the attitude we exhibit. Will we choose to brighten the lives of others or allow stress and frustration cloud our conduct? Today held several reminders of the exponential increase in joy when we choose smiles and love.

Appreciation:

One of my favorite religious leaders often reminded us that joy was NOT the same as comfort. There were several reminders today of how important it is that we each want something more for ourselves rather than someone wanting it for us. While we often see potential and opportunities for others they may not see it in themselves. We can help lead them to it, but it is ultimately up your them. If we push and attempt to help them too much we do not allow them the space and growth they truly need. We can choose joy for ourselves, we can choose action in an attempt to bring joy to others, but it is ultimately up to each individual to choose joy for themselves.

Presence:

While working on changing the drive belt of my bandsaw and tuning it up I had a few moments of extreme frustration, but I chose to laugh them off and let them go. I heard the voice of Dad reminding me to take a deep breath and the next thing I knew I was smiling and thinking back to my awesome memories of Dad. Life doesn’t always go as planned, but we can often leverage the unplanned into joy, it just takes a conscious decision to do so.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,139

Growth:

Three interesting insights from my Appreciation section tonight that have far reaching other impacts:

• “They represent the wearing smooth of a path in the brain, not the decisions of a rational consciousness.” Thorndike on habits and impulses
• The differences between being in “Discover Mode” or “Defend Mode” and how they relate to learning, in many ways similar to scarcity versus abundance, possibly even love versus fear.
• The power of awe is a profoundly positive impact on us – when we CHOOSE to see it

Appreciation:

Wowza… This book was one of the most insightful I’ve read recently. This helped me better understand many of the challenges I’m seeing in both personal and professional life. If you have kids under the age of 30 or interact with people under the age of 30 I would highly recommend this book.

While I’ve noticed definite changes in how my generation grew up versus this one I had no idea just how large of a difference there really was. So much to consider from this book, I will definitely read it again in the not too distant future.

If any of you read it I would be very interested in hearing your feedback and thoughts on it as well.

Presence:

My run this morning was so chill. The sun was slowly rising as I wrapped up so the entire run saw beautiful pinks and purples and oranges in the sky. As I ran past the beach there were two geese and a heron standing on the shore seemingly looking at the sunrise, and as I watched them a couple of bald eagles flew by as well. So chill!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,138

Growth:

Appreciation:

Way back when I was in college there was a tattoo I thought I wanted. From characters in a book on Taoism the ink would have read:

Indifferent Flow
Nonyielding Soul

While the tattoo was never meant to be (at least not as of yet) the concept has been firmly lodged in my brain. Today it came up again on a couple of occasions and I was reminded of the importance of being flexible when necessary while staying firm when appropriate. So difficult sometimes, it almost feels as if the opposite is easier to pull off for some reason.

Today I was flexible when needed on the non important things while sticking to my guns on the critical.

Presence:

I’m probably sounding like a broken record, but my time at home tonight was well invested. Dominic asked if his girlfriend could come over for dinner after their workout and we spent a couple hours talking, eating, and playing a couple of games. After she left the three of us played a few more games. Gavin went off to finish homework so Dominic and I started watching Eurovision 2024 together, something we’ve been planning for almost a year. So much interactive time with the boys!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,137

Growth:

The conversation with Dominic from last night really lodged itself in my brain last night! Throughout the day I was seeing comparisons to what we talked about to the situations I saw unfolding. There were also several more questions I’m excited to dive into with him when we have our next round of dialogue. Hearing his insight yesterday was an awesome peek inside his thought process and a wonderful source of inspiration for my thoughts today.

Appreciation:

Early bed time tonight will feel AMAZING!!! Yesterday I installed blackout blinds in our bedroom to provide even better sleeping conditions. Last night I could hardly tell if my eyes were open or closed it was so dark in the room. The only downside was that I didn’t get quite enough sleep due to the late concert. Tonight I’m getting everything done early, going to get a quick game in with the boys, and then head off to bed earlier than normal to pick up some extra sleep to finish recovering from a wildly busy (but very joyful) weekend.

Presence:

Over dinner both the boys were full on in their normal playful moods, joking, laughing, and giving each other a hard time while re-living memories and talking about track. Hearing them having fun like this always fills my bucket!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,136 – super tired but a very purpose driven day, will be concise and likely flesh out more details over the next few days.

Growth:

Gavin was absolutely exhausted today after an epic prom night. As he and I talked about today, those are the nights which will be seared into your memory for your entire life – well worth the temporary tiredness. Is there a better feeling as a parent than seeing your child create a lifelong positive memory like that?

Appreciation:

What a day! So many minutes shared with each of the boys, so many memories and laughs together! Throughout the day we had a few errands, a dog walk, a concert, a podcast, and a bunch of conversations together – as both combinations of diads and triads. I very much felt as if I was exactly where I was supposed to be and doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing all day.

Presence:

Dominic wrapped up his last freshman year class project by interviewing me podcast style for his leadership class. Not gonna lie, I think we might do that again before too long! We got into some pretty deep topics and what was supposed to be a 20 minute conversation ended up going an hour. What an awesome experience together!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,135

Growth:

Nothing like the power of YouTube when it comes to learning a new skill around the house! Back in the day I would have had a very difficult time figuring out how to fix my lawnmower on my own. With a couple of quick searches I was able to correct the first issue and then quickly diagnose and fix the second issue. It was still a little bit of a pain, but so much easier armed with the knowledge of what I needed to do in general. Such a useful tool!

Appreciation:

Wowza, I am exhausted! Last night’s track meet ran so late that I didn’t get home until a few minutes before midnight after dodging approximately 100 deer. By the time I went to the school to pick Gavin up and then went bed it was almost 1am. With picking up Dominic from college today I was out of bed at 6:15am and out the door a little before 7am. His girlfriend and I drove the two hours up north, picked him up, and then grabbed lunch on the way home. I then used my spare time to learn how to repair a broken starter rope and recoil spring on a lawnmower and then mowed the lawn. Just as I finished up it was time to take Gavin to his prom pictures. From there Dominic and I hit the grocery store and picked up some pizzas. Back to the house, play some games, eat supper, and now relax on the couch for a few minutes as I blog. By the time I’m in bed (shortly) I’ll be ready to completely crash. I’m 100% exhausted but grateful for all of the fun, memories, and adventures of the past 24-ish hours.

Presence:

What a handful of memorable moments there were today when I dropped off Gavin for his prom pics! So many laughs, smiles, and memories made!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,134

Growth:

Re-living challenging times may be difficult, but when done properly it can be so rewarding and insightful.

Appreciation:

Always nice when the planets align and there are pockets of time to hang out with my little brother. It may have only been a short lunch and watching some pole vaulting, but it was a blast and worth every single second and then some!

Presence:

Working remote never felt better!

Thanks!!!