As a friend put it today, “glad to hear you had an awesome weekend, it is nice to see you as a human being rather than a human doing like you usually are.” Amen!
Appreciation:
On my drive home my brother and I had a very fun and engaging conversation. We poked and prodded each other on various things, laughed, joked, talked about dad-life, and caught up on some of the goings ons we have. There were also bits of political based conversation, followed up by research from both of us, not to see who was right, rather to help us both find truth. Talks as normal about everything and nothing, a conversation that left my stomach sore from the laughing. What a perfect way to transition from work to home.
Presence:
Getting our run in this morning in the unseasonably warm weather while watching the sun slowly rise was a wonderful way to get some solo time with Becky today to help catch us up from this past weekend. I’m always a fan of getting outside and exercising with her, especially pre-sunrise!
It is okay to be away from home sometimes, even if the sometimes seems to be kind of piled up on each other. The time I spend with friends, the time I spend alone, when used properly becomes fuel to live into the best me possible for the overwhelming majority of time I spend with my family.
Appreciation:
One of the things I’m most grateful for today is taking advantage of downtime. Over the past few days I’ve found some downtime to transform from nonproductive to hyper productive. In doing so I was able to take a potentially overwhelming couple of days and transform them into calm within the storm. This afternoon my camping gear was almost prepped and ready on its own thanks to the list and details I had prepped yesterday. Getting some final details worked out was possible as a result of the preparation during the quiet time. Some of our biggest smiles today were the result of a handful of chunks of time I was able to utilize to work on a very large project in bits and pieces. So grateful for using that time effectively!
Presence:
Spending a eight minutes with Becky and the boys watching a collection of photos and memories from the past 19 years combined into one video was fantastic. Each picture as a trip down memory lane, reminders of all the time we’ve spent together. Fantastic!
Go for a walk, often. The time spent outdoors, in motion, is medicine for the soul and mana for the soul.
Appreciation:
What a day it has been – for a variety of reasons. Great news to start the morning. A long walk with much time to think and be present. A day of great times and conversations with friends. Reminders of an epic evening last year, watching the northern lights with my family and then walking until late at night with Dominic watching the lights dancing overhead.
It also would have been Dad’s 70th birthday today, my heart has been full with memories of him throughout the day.
Presence:
Spending time on the deck outdoors with friends, talking, playing cards, watching birds, soaking in sun, enjoying the fresh air, reconnecting, relaxing, and rejuvenating.
How many of us suffer from similar challenges without knowing others do too? How often does ego cloud our judgement when we really should be open to sharing our challenges with others?
Appreciation:
My run this morning was a wonderful opportunity to carve out some time for myself, quiet time to let my brain decompress and think. Much of it was spent walking through how to handle stress, ways to grow through challenges, and reminders of blending purpose and values.
Presence:
So many laughs throughout the day my stomach aches from chuckling so hard! Great moments of presence in reconnecting with friends.
My heart breaks for Becky and all those who devote their lives to protecting our environment. They deserve so much better from our government than they are receiving from federal government leaders. They are all in my prayers and thoughts. I’m also praying for the leaders of our federal government to have the ability to see how negative of an impact they have when they lead with greed, hatred, and ignorance.
Difficult one today, no question. Much needed time with friends, both in moments of laughter as well as in cathartic conversation of difficulties.
Engaging dialogue on how to stay positive in times of extreme anger, on how to keep love in my hearts when my anger borders on hatred for those few who have caused great pain.
Conversations on how to work through extreme challenges in a way in which we can create some shard of positivity rather than succumb to anger and hatred.
Sharing the deep hurt we feel when a loved one is hurting terribly by something that I don’t have the ability to fix.
Talking about what is most important in life and the obstacles we put in our own way out of ego and fear.
I’m just going to wrap it up there. My heart hurts too much tonight.
Again, my heart goes out to Becky and all those impacted so negatively by a federal government currently led by hatred and greed. May those impacted have the courage and love to find a way forward, and may the leaders acting on hate and greed be moved to act on love and compassion instead.
Two quotes really caught my attention today, both for different but similar reasons…
Every man has a passion gnawing away at the bottom of his heart, just as every fruit has its worm.
Alexander Dumas
This one was a reminder to stay focused on what is truly important in life. Passion can be a great thing, but it’s so important to be cognizant of whether it is one that grows us towards our purpose and fits our values. If so, lean into and embrace it. If not, be wary of the impact it can have on the rest of our lives and don’t let it ruin the fruit of our lives.
Son, time is all the luck you need.
Seven Mary Three
What a concise reminder that so long as we are alive and breathing we have an opportunity to live. We don’t need luck, we just need time. If we have time we can learn and grow through anything.
As I’ve often thought, there’s only one thing in life that I will not be able to grow through… whatever kills me.
This little gem from Epictetus really hit me between the eyes today. Throughout the day my mind kept pulling back to this concept, it filtered my seemingly every one of my thoughts differently.
“If you wish to improve be content to appear clueless or stupid in extraneous matters.”
Epictetus
What really matters? The little bit of news that doesn’t make a true difference? The highlights of last night’s sporting events? The reels on Instagram? That stat about something that you don’t always need?
Focus on what truly matters… our purpose, our values, our actions, and this present moment.
Appreciation:
This morning I took Leia out for a very early morning hike, hitting the trails before 4:45am. As the world slept we wandered the woods and the bluff top ridges. We watched a barge slowly slide up the river in the dark as the birds began to sing. Dropping in the valley we had the sensation of being watched so I fired up my flashlight and there was a group of five deer jurors looking down at us from the hilltop, judging our intentions and actions. Leia jumped in terror at the most horrifying sound it seemed she had ever heard… the gobble of a turkey from across a valley. So many birds were talking to us, singing us their morning songs. The sky slowly glowed brighter and brighter. The smell of pollen and woods and fresh soil saturated my nose as my breathing increased going up hills with my pack on. All around us was a paradox of both total stillness and complete action.
What an invigorating start to the day!
Presence:
On my drive to work I had an awesome experience. As I drove past the pullout to view Brady’s Bluff in Perot State Park I saw a car pulled over. The driver was standing with his hands on his hips, looking at the bluffs glowing in the bright morning sun, a complete look of awe on his face as he took in the wondrous site across the Mississippi River.
I couldn’t help but smile and feel joy at seeing his state of awe and wonder, taking in the same view which has left me the same way so many times before.
I don’t know his beliefs, his politics, his history, his career, his class, or anything about him – but I know he is my brother as all humankind are, and that only added to my sense of joy.
In an homage to The Obstacle is the Way I found way to turn a frustrating construction induced traffic jam into an engaging use of the “bonus” time… Nothing like reconnecting with my little brother when our work and life schedules have kept us apart for a while! Rather than wasting energy on stressing over the delay I was able to spend time laughing hard, shooting the bull, and taking a moment to find much needed levity on a heavy day.
Appreciation:
We always have a choice to make, how we will respond to whatever hand we’ve been dealt. These choices aren’t always easy, we often have to choose between the difficult or more difficult decision.
In either case, we must first start with a sense of reality and acceptance of what is happening. We must pause, observe it for what it is – simply an action / issue / challenge – and withhold judgement on whether it is good or bad. The issue is simply what it is, we choose the perspective to attach to it (or choose not to). Once we see it clearly, as it is without our filter applied to it, we can then determine the action to take, the choice to be made.
Throughout this year I’ve been focusing on seeing with clarity. As a natural optimist it is so easy to get an unrealistically positive impression of something. I must focus more on seeing with reality first, and then applying the positivity to the decision. Adding positivity to the challenge itself doesn’t help, it actually hurts. See the issues with clarity and without judgement first, make a decision, and then maintain positivity in the potential outcome while still preparing for failure.
Today I lived into that and it made all the difference.
Presence:
The Black River was sublimely calm this morning as Becky and I struck out on our early morning run. The pre-sunrise painted sky was reflected perfectly in the mirror glass of the water. We were able to look out and see exactly where five fish had jumped almost at once, their ripples all emanating from the launching points. So chill, so calm, so perfect a start to the day.
I don’t have to be productive every moment of every day. Take time to just be, to relax, to not be working towards a goal, to try learning or observing something… just be, the rest will take care of itself.
Appreciation:
Whew! This weekend was a wild combination of productivity, relaxation, and time with family. Having Dominic home for part of yesterday and today was awesome, especially with our family walk with all four of us after lunch. Some chill time for Gavin, Becky, & I after Dominic hit the road followed by alternating times with Gavin and Becky. Now a moment of quiet introspection for myself before I hit the bed for the night and start all over again tomorrow.
A wonderful weekend mixed with so many of the things I love, a perfect set up for the next couple of weekends which will be going in completely different directions.
Presence:
Our entire church experience today was a lesson in presence. We arrived early and were the greeters for the mass, taking time to focus on each smiling face and welcoming them into our church. During the service there were a handful of healthy and exuberant kids who kept us all smiling at their antics. A brief moment of sharing gratitude for someone who’s made a positive impact in my life. So many smiles and greetings as everyone left the church. Throughout the service it was a presence born of love for our fellow humans, so full of hope for where we could grow to as an entire community of humans.
This book, one of the most influential I’ve ever read. Though I’ve read it more times than I can count I always walk away with a new insight and stronger resolve. Truly a work of art.
Appreciation & Presence:
Our hike in Beaver Creek Valley State Park was outstanding today! Several trips up and down the bluffs, it was exactly the workout I was hoping for. There were so many different types of birds throughout, in one stretch my bird sound app picked up over two dozen different types while the visuals we had of the birds were vibrant! Throw in more than a dozen trout chilling in the pools of the stream and it was pretty much nonstop wildlife beyond every corner. And I haven’t even started on the plants… so green and alive! We can’t begin to count how many different types of flowers there were, how many plants, they were nonstop!
I cannot think of any better way to spend a big chunk of a day than outside soaking in the sights like this, uncoupled from news and media, spending bonus time with Becky, and getting an invigorating workout in.
Thankful for Forty 