Day 3,113

Growth:

A dream WITH a plan has a much higher probability of success. One week into my weight training plan and it has already been more successful thanks to the detailed strategy and plan I put together.

Appreciation:

During one of my stretches of driving I fired up Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five. I’ve read it a few times before, but I think I am enjoying it now more than ever!

Presence:

Hitting the gym before sitting in the car for 10+ hours was a great idea. Not only did it help on the ride, but I had an awesomely focused workout. Nice starting the weekend in a great headspace!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,112

Growth:

Is there anything more important to do than to be there for a friend when they need one? Both people on both sides of the equation come out ahead. When we need help we need to be willing to ask for it. When someone asks for help we need to be willing to provide it.

Appreciation:

I’ve been totally grooving on an outdoor vibe today! From the morning run outdoors to observing and appreciating all the natural sights while I drove I was seemingly smiling incessantly today. The healing and calming power of nature is such a blessing!

Presence:

Just as we were about to run past the beach on the black River a bright column of orange light on the horizon caught my attention. It took a moment to realize that it was the sliver of the moon slowly rising from the bluffs. It was AWESOME!!! Completely surreal, the sight of the moon held my attention for the entirety of the beach. What a beautiful start to the day!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,111

Growth:

Clear is kind, unclear is unkind.

Brené Brown

Appreciation:

There’s definitely more to this one than I’ll dive into today, but I would bet that it will be back in a bit once the rest has the opportunity to percolate.

I’m thankful do it taking the time to learn, listen to, and appreciate the music the boys listen to. Their tastes are quite unique and don’t always match my tastes, but through their songs I learn more about my sons. It provides another reason for conversation and has led to more than a small handful of deep conversations as a result.

They’ve expanded my musical horizons while simultaneously expanding our relationship.

Presence:

This evening Becky was making supper while I did dishes. Nothing crazy, but a wonderful opportunity to have undistracted conversation with the two of us.

Later in the evening Becky, Gavin, and I all hopped on FaceTime with Dominic and had an engaging conversation catching up on all the goings ons in our family. Nothing crazy, but a wonderful opportunity to have undistracted conversation with the four of us.

Those moments, both priceless.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,110

Whew!!! Where did today go??? Short version for tonight, gotta get to sleep and hit the gym early tomorrow morning.

There were many moments of appreciation today including a great morning lift, a super upbeat conversation, a beautiful drive, pushing past discomfort, and so many laughs in a very informative training session.

The highlight of the day was Gavin’s confirmation. Many years of religious study led to a culmination this evening and I am grateful for the opportunity to celebrate that with him. We’ve had more and more faith based conversations recently and this was something that will lead to more dialogue. Such an awesome next step in his faith life!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,109

Growth:

LOL – what was I just saying about multi tasking yesterday? Likely due to doing multiple things at once I found myself in the unique position of getting undressed to change for a workout over lunch when I realized I’d forgotten to pack a pair of short to wear! Not the end of the world, but a timely reminder of the importance of focusing on one thing at a time.

Appreciation:

During one of my meetings today I practiced jotting down everything I wanted to say before saying it. I then paused until the timing was right and then determined if it was still worthwhile. In a few cases I spoke up and shared the thought. More often than not I opted to hold back as it wasn’t as relevant as I thought it would be. Here’s to pausing to think rather than just shoot from the hip and speak – it worked out well today!

Presence:

Okay, so the snow isn’t exactly what I would have ordered up for the weather today, but it was pretty spectacular falling in huge fluffy snowflakes all day. I had a blast watching them slowly drift down through my window. Yes, it’s April, but it was still beautiful.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,108

Growth:

Very interesting anecdote in the book I’m currently reading (Ikiagi) today. They shared a story of a research study in which people were tested on their ability to focus on counting red arrows appearing on a screen as more and more blue arrows also appear on the screen. What they found was that the more stimuli there was, the less effective they were at staying focused. Simple, but a beautiful way to remember the importance of not getting distracted with non-essential details.

Appreciation:

I’m all types of tired and sore this evening – in a very good way! Today I started my revised workout plan and it was better than expected. There was way more sweat than expected, but I’m glad I got the ball rolling. It’s taken a while to put together, but so far so good after one day 😉

Presence:

Bonus laughs with Gavin as we took a little time to chill today – priceless!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,107

Growth:

I have two choices, complain and be frustrated about it or just fix it. Today I took a moment to get to the right answer, but at least I finally got there. Taking a moment to fix it not only prevented future frustration, but it also eliminated the future frustration I would have had AND I felt better about myself for just doing what needed to be done.

Appreciation:

On our way home from up north the boys took turns driving while Becky and I had time to work on projects we both had. This was an awesome change of pace from when I normally drive and the boys have the opportunity to chill in the backseat. Not only did this give Becky and I some much needed bonus time, but this also gave the boys some time to shoot the bull and hang out while they piloted us home.

Presence:

We arrived at church a bit early today and it was wonderful having some quiet time and stillness in the church. The quiet moments provided an opportunity to relax my mind and focus on my breath. The stillness was exactly what I needed to help open my ears for the message shared in the sermon today.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,106

Growth:

Staying close to my normal sleep schedule really makes a profound impact on how I feel. After going to bed after 1:30am I was still in rough shape even after almost eight hours of sleep. It took a while to get everything back to normal. Keep working towards a standardized sleep pattern – it will take work and sacrifice, but I will feel so much better as a result!

Appreciation:

This afternoon I had the opportunity to tag in and help collect sap for maple syrup with my father in law, my boys, and a bunch of my nephews. So much fun tramping through the woods with five gallon buckets to pour the sap into! While the activity itself was a great excuse for being outside and doing something physical, I think what I enjoyed most was seeing how the boys all interacted with their cousins and grandpa. There was so much laughing and joking, maybe some snowballs, and a bunch of work as well. Seeing them continue to grow their friendships with their cousins was awesome!

Presence:

Bonus outside time today! Becky and I took a chill walk through the woods up north with no set destination or agenda and enjoyed the fresh air. Thanks to being so far away from traffic we were able to hear so many sounds of wildlife – the drumming of grouse, gobbling of turkey, and so many other bird songs. The calmness of being outside always brings me joy.

Thanks!!!

Day 3,105

LOL – I’m totally exhausted. It’s almost 1:30am and we just got to Becky’s parent’s house. After Gavin’s track meet in Minneapolis I drove us about three hours as everyone else fell asleep. Sleepy time for me – and only five hours past my bedtime!

The day was awesome! Yoga, running, recovering from late night travel last night, time with Becky, time with Dominic, unexpected deep conversations, watching Gavin do well, and hearing the boys joking and playing in the backseat. Great times!

Thanks!!!

Day 3,104

Growth:

What a week of learning it has been! When I was reviewing my notes from the last handful of days I struggle to understand how we fit so much content into such a short period of time. It’ll take me a while to process all of it completely.

One thing that really jumped out at me was a very simple and all encompassing concept: the power of creating space to learn, reflect, and think like this. Many of the concepts learned weren’t new, rather wonderful reminders that needed a little space to come back up for air. In shutting down all the noise and busyness of the whirlwind my brain had time to better digest the concepts.

How much better would all of my action be if I strategically and intentionally created pockets of space to think and grow like this? How can I help my mind remember that being “busy” is not the same as being “productive ,” nor “creating space” the same as “being lazy.” Definitely one of the key takeaways for me this week!

Appreciation:

One of the best post training wrap up tricks I’ve learned is to package everything up before I get home. Review the notes, categorize and track the next steps. Re-write the key takeaways in a manner in which they are easier to share. Go through it all in detail while it is still relatively still fresh in the brain before I allow my mind to move on to the next thing. While it is really not an activity I look forward to it is one that really helps me better utilize the knowledge I invested time into learning.

Presence:

For whatever reason I’ve been very fortunate to have some very engaging conversations with my Uber drivers throughout the years. Today was a continuation of that streak. Our conversation on the way to the airport included discussions of life and death, surviving cancer, moving to many locations, watching movies in Wisconsin, seeing moose out in the wild, deer related car accidents, and seemingly every thing else in between. I’m not sure how it always seems to work out like this, but as per normal we were all laughing and smiling by the time the ride came to an end.

Thanks!!

PS I just wrote this and realized I’d left out the way my morning started, with an invigorating six mile run when I’d only planned on four. I so appreciate starting the day with my heart pumping blood through my body and exercising my grit muscles!