Day 2,907

Growth:

One of the best parts of presenting to a group is the opportunity to learn from others. Even though I’m the one presenting the participants always have awesome ideas and best practices to share. Today was no different, there were a handful of really positive ideas I took away from the presentation.

Appreciation:

My knee…. Most of me is in great shape, and my right knee usually is too, but over the past couple days it has reminded me of its weakness. That said, it feels like it’s a little tender and has swollen up, nothing a couple of days of rest and ice can’t fix. I probably pushed it a little too much in yoga last night, but that’s life.

So why am I writing about my bum knee during a gratitude blog?

Simple – there is so much positive to pull from this experience. Yes, my knee doesn’t feel good and I have to change my plans BUT it also is a test for me to pass. I can get frustrated about it and complain, or I can choose a mindset of appreciation and growth. I can ask myself that enlightening question – “What can I learn from this?”

This is a reminder of why it’s important for me to focus on losing weight so I can have less pain like this. This reminds me to appreciate the other 99.999% of the time when I’m completely healthy. This is a test to see how I can learn to sit still rather than going one hundred miles a minute. This is a reminder that I am more than the ways I identify myself – how can I be a runner when I can’t run for a while? This is a reminder to give more grace to those who suffer chronic pain. This reminds me how important physical health is.

Possibly most importantly at the base of all of this? This thought exercise I’ve just completed reminds me to focus on the upside, to control what I can control – my mindset. This sucks sitting around with an ice pack on my knee, but it can also be a wonderful teacher if I choose to be s good student. I am grateful for this test!

Presence:

Snuggling with Leia is awesome, for sure. What I’m really appreciating frequently is observing Leia experiencing the world as a puppy. She sniffs, chews, bounces, jumps, inspects, and plays with so many things fit the first time. She’s somehow cautious and fearless at the same time and is always learning and growing. What a gift to pause and try to see the world through her eyes gif a moment!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,906

Growth:

Take time to work on what’s most important. It almost never feels the most urgent, but it is the tiny percent of stuff that makes the largest percent of impact. Today was one of those days and it felt great to make progress!

Appreciation:

Not gonna lie, my brain is still processing the Presence portion I have already written below. It was pretty intense and my melon is having a difficult time setting that memory down for a moment so I can work on other things.

So thankful for yoga! Yes, I know, I sound like a broken record, but it is one of the go to’s to help me take a deep breath and chill while also getting an awesome sweat on. During busy times like soccer season I am always tempted to skip it and just have a quiet night at home. Fortunately for me – and what I am most thankful for this evening – Becky is always asking if I want to go. There’s never any pressure from her, but the one simple act of asking helps remind me that I will always feel better for going. As usual, Becky’s right 😉 So thankful for her ongoing willingness to ask and her grit to always go when she has the option.

Presence:

On my drive home there was a moment when I had some music on (My Own Soul’s Warning by The Killers), I had the moon roof open, and the sun was shining down as I drove over the bridge connecting Minnesota and Wisconsin. For whatever reason, in that moment, I felt an intensely deep connection to something larger than just me. I was immediately overcome with shivers of awe and had to really focus on driving lest I go of the road. I know, it probably sounds all types of strange, but it was like I’d gotten just a tiny glimpse of something impossibly immense, almost like the feeling of connected humbleness when viewing the mountains, but it was something bigger and more complete than just something physical. Honestly, I have no idea what the sensation was but my mind is continuing to go back to inspect that memory and see what I can pull from that moment of clarity.

Regardless of what it was, I was in a complete state of awe and felt like it was a wonderful gift. In that moment I felt whole in a way much larger than myself, as odd as that may sound. All I know is that in that one moment all felt connected, at peace, and loved.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,905

Growth:

Over the past week I’ve worked on revising my diet. Nothing crazy, but much more healthy than I had been eating. Last night I gave myself some grace and indulged a bit. Nothing outside my old normal, quite tame actually, but very different from where I had been this week. The difference in how I felt this morning compared to every other morning for the past week was wild!!! What an excellent reminder of how diet really impacts how we feel each day.

Appreciation:

This weekend has been ridiculously busy, but intensely relaxing at the same time. Not much for downtime usually leaves me a bit stressed, but not this time. Somehow I feel more relaxed and calm in spite of – maybe because of – how full our weekend was. Not sure his we pulled it off, but I’m grateful for feeling recharged after a busy weekend.

Presence:

This afternoon a couple of friends came over to meet our puppy and brought their kindergartener. While we were talking he was super active and wanted to pile up the leaves to jump into them. After helping to create the pile it only seemed appropriate for me to take a turn jumping in and getting buried in the leaves. So much fun acting like a five year old with a five year old!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,904 – Short and sweet tonight, been a long day with plenty of social time and a movie running late with Gavin, this is the short version before bed because I’m exhausted 😉

Growth:

Pouring gasoline on a fire is never the solution for putting the fire out. Pause, breathe, let level heads win out over emotion.

Appreciation:

This morning I had an awesome conversation with Mom and it was a blast catching up and spending time laughing with each other. Having that time to connect was a wonderful start to my day!

Presence:

Spending time watching Gavin play his butt off after putting in a ton of time in the off-season was priceless. Super proud of you bud!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,903

I mean, c’mon, what else is there to say after these pics? What a welcome addition to our family!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,902

Growth:

No one steps in the same river twice. It’s no secret that there are a handful of books I’ve read and reread several times. The one I’ve been reading recently is Great by Choice by Jim Collins. This has to be at least the sixth time I’ve read it and I am still learning so much from it! The benefit of additional life experiences have helped more of it sink in at different levels than in the past. Read, reread, and repeat.

Appreciation:

Today I was gifted additional time in the form of a project a teammate had already completed without my knowledge. Funny how quickly the newly discovered time dissipated. I made a lot of progress on another couple of fronts but realized I still have much more to get done. This has helped me see I have been scheduling myself too tightly and need to give myself more slack time and stay more focused on the most critical. What a gift to learn that this way rather than falling disastrously behind! Uncomfortable learning, but in a very positive way.

Presence:

There were a couple of moments today in which I paused, took a deep breath, and reminded myself to focus on what I can control and not what I cannot. Nothing bad or anything, but just moments when I needed a deep breath to bring awareness to my mind so I would focus. Those moments of calm and stillness helped tremendously!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,901

Growth:

Writing thoughts and experiences and ideas on paper can really have a big positive impact on our future. The amount of learning I’ve pulled from going through one single business journal from a five month period of time really showed through today. There were a handful of times in which something I’d written to myself back then helped me be a better me today.

In addition to utilizing that information today I also was more intentional in writing down the nuggets that would possibly help future me.

Appreciation:

So much fun hearing about Dominic really spreading his wings and flourishing in his first few weeks of college! Yesterday was his first day of classes and his first rowing practice, today was his first rugby practice. Spending time on FaceTime seeing and hearing his excitement was amazing and joyful. I miss having him at home but I’m so incredibly happy for how he’s growing so rapidly in a new environment.

Presence:

Dominic is at college. Becky is at yoga. Gavin is in the driving school taking his driving temps test. I am sitting in the car, blogging, and about to relax and enjoy the moment of stillness. The breeze blowing in the windows feels like fall, the gray clouds are adding a nice overcast view, and I’m enjoying it all.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,900

Growth:

When someone asks if you’re okay and says that you seem a little off in a respectful way – listen! They are watching out for you, helping you see something you may have otherwise missed, or are helping you see that you aren’t as good at hiding the stress or scattered feeling you already have. Thank them, listen to them, breathe, and then adapt.

In some ways I leaned back on the advice from yoga on Saturday. Their comment helped me see that my thoughts were feeling panicked, I then chose to have stronger thoughts. That made all the difference today and helped me get my head back in the right space!

Appreciation:

Wowza, I don’t even know how to put this one into words today. Honestly, I think I’m going to leave it a little more vague on purpose until I have time to fully absorb it. I received an incredibly powerful thank you today, technically it was pointed towards my boys, in the form of a letter and a meaningful gift that already means the world to me. The letter was shared with my sons and I’m so grateful for the message it contained. The gift was so perfect in so many ways. One of the ways was more fitting than I could imagine as it totally fit a lesson Dad taught me long ago. Knowing that the boys will now have a gift of their own along those same lines fills my heart with joy. I’m still smiling and will be for quite some time. Honestly, the letter was humbling, heartwarming, and inspiring all rolled into one. What a gift we can weave for others through taking the time to put our thoughts and emotions into physical being to be held onto forever. I am beyond grateful for the gift of this letter to my sons today.

Presence:

There were many moments tonight that were full of presence and joy. A humorous “invite” from a friend for a meeting we have scheduled for Friday, sharing a gift with the boys, spending time in the car with Becky in between work and soccer, excellent conversations at work with teammates, laughter with business partners, and even this moment of quiet reflection while I blog. That said, watching the sun turn a deep red and slowly descend into a pink and purple and orange sky above the bluffs on the drive home. We all paused the conversation to enjoy the beautiful sight. What a wonderful moment!

Thanks!!!

Day 2,899

Growth:

I spent some time going through an old business journal of mine thinking it would be a simple review of old notes. Next thing I knew I was getting ideas, seeing how much I’ve grown, seeing how little I’ve changed, and pretty much everything in between. Honestly, it was so overwhelming by the end that I had to set it down to let it sink in a bit. What I’m most grateful for is seeing how much I can learn from those little notes I write in the margins, the scribbles, the ideas for myself. So many of those little comments were useful and brought back excellent reminders today.

Appreciation:

Becky and I spent a few minutes walking through everything we did this weekend and I’m now even more exhausted – in a good way! Time with family (in person, on the phone, and texting/messaging), mini golf, eating out, getting on the boat, biking, spending time outside, walking, joking, watching movies, playing games, cleaning, planning future vacations, and spending time solo relaxing / reading / reflecting. So much fit into a long weekend I’m grateful for all that we did AND an early bed time tonight to recover before we start the next week!

Presence:

This morning we woke up a little earlier than normal for a holiday and took off for a bike ride while the temperature was still low-ish. While we were biking there were some excellent views of wildlife when we left the road. One spot in particular had a neat surprise – four green herons in one little area! They are a little difficult to see and a lot smaller than their Great Blue cousins, but they’re still very cool birds when the sun lights up their feathers.

Thanks!!!

Day 2,898

Growth:

I learned a new term today, Sisu.

From Wikipedia: Sisu is a Finnish concept described as stoicdetermination, tenacity of purpose, grit, bravery, resilience,^[1] and hardiness.^[2] It is held by Finns to express their national character. It is generally considered not to have a literal equivalent in English (tenacity, grit, resilience, and hardiness are much the same things, but do not necessarily imply stoicism or bravery).

Appreciation:

So much good stuff all day long! Laughs. Time as a family. Sharing memories. Knocking out a round of mini golf. Cooking for others. Playing games. Relaxing. Watching a movie with Gavin. What a positively wonderful day!

Presence:

Touching a ship which was present in the heat of WWII was wildly surreal. At one point I laid my palm across the metal railing and paused to think of all who’d touched that same spot and what they were facing in those moments. History made reality.

Thanks!!!