Mile Stones

When I run in rural Pennsylvania which is where the majority of my running life has taken place, I would run the same handful of routes every day.  I came to feel as though I knew every little stone on the paths I would take.  There was a sense that I could tell if something was out of place.  As if I could tell the changes that had taken place even in my absence. 

Life for me is often the same way.  I feel like I know the stones I'll encounter along the way.  Many are ones others wouldn't even notice.  I feel like I can sense changes even if I wasn't part of that change. Through the years of our lives there are all kinds of stones that present themselves on our path; some are large perfectly shaped and beautiful, while others are barely noticeable until we arms spinning, balance failing have caught our toe on them.  There are stones that we expect to encounter and others that catch us by surprise.  One thing is the same about all the stones that litter our paths they provide us with a moment to show what we are really made of.  We can allow their size or quantity to overwhelm us and send us crashing to the ground or we can find the beauty in all of them as they add texture to our lives.

May you know the stones on the path of your life and may you greet them all with grace.

for my daughter.  Who meets all life's stones with grace.

Worth your Time

My daughter showed me this today. 

It brought me to tears

because she was so moved by it.

I love her.

 

L. O. & Ts

I run every day. 

Today is day #661.

I like this saying a little better this way:

If you always do what you always did, you always get what you always got.

Saturday I proved how true that saying is for me.

What running the Hashawha Hills Trail Run 50k showed me:

Lessons

I learned that I can run with someone else and not get lost.

I learned that what works for some runners isn't always what works for me.

 I learned that I can ignore a lot of discomfort when distracted by good conversation.
I learned again that my mind is 1000% stronger than my body will ever be.

I learned you can run fast across a hay field and not break your ankle.

sorry pappy, you were wrong.
I learned that just when I think I've fallen in love with this sport I fall deeper.

Observations
I noticed that I can run a 50k on very little fueling.

I noticed that some people don't like cheerfulness after 20 miles.

I noticed the same views can be just as breathtaking the second time around.
I noticed that people are really nice especially when you stop mid-race to help them pick up their dropped mail.  

I noticed that body type and age have nothing to do with how well you run an Ultra!
I noticed there is a child-like joy about splashing mud while you run.

Thoughts
I wonder how many runners were tempted to not get the gum bands?
I wonder if I will ever be able to share that level of joy with my family?

I think about those volunteers and wonder if they know how much their smiling faces helped me?
I wonder if my family knows how much ultra running is a part of who I am?

I think about the runners whose only desire is to go fast and I wonder why?
I wonder how much of this I will be able to put into practice on Saturday?

The things I let get to me...

...when I have a race coming.

As a runner it is usually while running that I notice drivers but in the past 24 hours drivers have been really getting on my nerves in my everyday life.  Take for example my drive home after work yesterday.  I was going through an area near our middle and high schools.  This area is residential so the speed limit is set very low and there are two 90 degree turns.  As I was winding my way through I cam upon a car with two young boys in it.  Well, sorta in it.  One of them was sitting in the open window of the car apparently videoing two other young boys who were on scooter holding onto the cars open windows as it came towards me. 

Luckily I paying attention or I would have hit the young man holding onto the driver's door.  As I drove off the road to avoid him, he politely snarkily said, "Heeelllllooooo" as I gave him my best disappointed grownup look.

Despite much googling I could not come up with a photo to represent what I saw.  I did however find video of teens doing this same behavior. 

You don't have to watch this whole video but what I found interesting is that the young lady doesn't want to do this but the male voice, presumably the driver, pressures her into it.

My next run in with a driver was when the driver of my daughter's school bus barely paused at our house this morning. 
4 minutes early.

I keep a diligent eye on our time in the morning.  I carry my cell phone from 7 a.m. until after the bus goes.  This habit eliminates any human error from watching a clock that I might have set wrong. 

This morning at 7:17 I ran downstairs to bring our dogs into the house so that they would not try to get on the bus with S'ghetti Girl.  As I ran back up the steps the bus was pulling away from our drive at 7:20.  Our bus is due at 7:23. 

I raced down our very short driveway yelling.  The kids on the bus saw me.  Our driver did not stop.  S'ghetti Girl grabbed her things and we jumped into the car and chased down the bus two stops later.

No major harm.  But I wonder why is it that getting behind the wheel makes people act like they have lost all common sense?

That driver could have easily stopped out of kindness due to her early arrival.  Those kids could have gotten into that car if they need a quicker ride home.  As far as I know nothing bad has come from either situation but it could have.  I could have been distracted and hit that boy.  I could have wrecked my car "chasing down" the bus.  All because, in my opinion, there was a lack of common sense. 

But that is just what I think. 

So tell me, how would you have handled these situations?

Would you do anything further about the kid's behavior or the bus driver's?

What have you seen or been guilty of on the road ways lately?

Hashawha Hills 50k tomorrow watch for an update on FB if you follow me there.

In the area, let me know so we can get together.

Run strong and have fun to everyone racing this weekend.

Thoughts for Thursday

This morning S'ghetti Girl and I saw a rainbow.

Why is it that the simple refraction of sunlight through raindrops sees the whisper a greater meaning?

Are you Talented or a Hard Worker?

Hard work beats talent,

when talent doesn't work as hard.

Talent.  What is talent?  And how do you know if you have it? 

Do you keep running if you don't have it?

I have never thought that I was a talented runner.  My running is rarely a thing of beauty.  The form that has worked for me is not a reflection of grace and ease.  You won't see my running poses emulated on the cover of running magazines.  Because of those things talented is not an adjective that I would included in describing my running ability.  But unlike perhaps some other sports, I don't think I have to have a talent for running to get from it what I want and become good at it along the way.

What I may lack in talent for running I make up for in hard work.  Although until recently I would never have used that adjective; hard, to describe my efforts either. 

I love that saying,

Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work as hard. 

It's a handy thing to have in mind when a run does get hard or a day has been long and a workout still awaits.  The saying is catchy and inspiring in it's wording, it reminds me of several things about my running and the might be true for you as well.

I'm rarely competing against other runners.  My races a typically about pushing myself to better the outcome of a certain race or distance.  I do go into a few races with AG places to "defend" and there is a part of me that would like to have my finish time still be "good enough" to hold the title I had previously won.  It's always fulfilling to see how I stand up against other runners but it's rarely about beating someone else.

I also don't usually think my daily running is hard.  With my streak there are days that have become hard and they cause me to think about where my running is going and hard is not a place running belongs for me.  Those days make me review what I want out of running vs what I am getting.  Hard is more about effort than difficulty.  Hard is more about dedication and consistency than strain and pain.

But the message that any runner can "win."  That any runner can put forth the effort and meet their goals regards of the competition is really what I hear when I say,

Hard work beats talent, when talent doesn't work as hard.

So what are you?

A talented runner?  Or a hard worker?

What If

I just finished watching Letters to Juliet last night while running on the treadmill.

I won't ruin the movie for you but I will share with you the first part of the "letter from Juliet" that was written in the movie, it read:

'What' and ‘if’ two words as nonthreatening as words come. But put them together side-by-side and they have the power to haunt you for the rest of your life: ‘What if?'..."

I believe that things happen for a reason in our lives. 

Today in one of the payments I processed I found this tract.

God is still speaking...

What if you are never quiet enough to hear Him?

On your next run take out those ear buds and just listen.

Can you ask for help?

Today is Day 291


Even as a child I preferred to play alone.  I didn't need anyone else to have a good time.  I did enjoy when I had playmates to join in the fun, I just didn't require their presence to play.

I am sure that my mother thought that was a wonderful quality to have as a child.  She didn't have to arrange for friends to come over to "keep me occupied."  She didn't have to spend hours playing with me.  I was just fine to find something to do on my own. 

In my adult life my independence has served me well.  When my husband has been out of the country for extended periods of time while I missed him daily and worried about his safety, I held life together at home with the kids without any problem.

But recently I have found that this quality about myself may not be such a positive personality trait.  My independent nature makes it very difficult for me to ask for help from anyone for anything.

I think LBM has inherited this same quality.  This morning while I was getting ready and loading the car for the day he was in the living room watching How to Train Your Dragon.  A movie that he had been in love with just a few months ago. 

As I walked through the house to make sure I hadn't forgotten something I noticed the tv screen was blue.  I thought, 'Great! The dvd player is broken.'  But after popping out the disc I immediately saw the problem.  LBM had taken out the disc snapped it in half and put it back into the player. 

I wonder if my habit of "doing everything" on my own did in some way cause this situation.  LBM is responsible and old enough to understand not to damage his "toys."  But maybe in his efforts to do it himself he took on a task that he isn't quite old enough to do yet. 

It makes me think about the example I am being vs. the example I think I am being.  I think independence is a valuable and needed trait but maybe those around me view my "example" a bit differently.  If nothing else it is something to consider as I continue to refine the person I am and want to be.  I'll think a bit more about what others might be actually getting out of my example instead of what I think they should be learning from me.  Do you every wonder, what are my loved ones really learning from my example?  Is it what I want them to be learning from you?

I will start, today, by asking for help with at least one thing. 
It will be a new way to teach others that I value them and their skills.  By asking for help maybe I will be able to show my family more of what I want to be teaching them by giving them a chance to get a clearer message.  Do you find it easy to accept help from others?

Because it's it a fact that we are not given more of any thing but instead we are given more opportunities to practice what we have already been given.  I am given love every day and I have been provided with people to share that love with.  I am given energy every day and I am blessed with the time to productively use that energy each day.  I am given patience every day and I am provided with many chances to practice or not that patience every day.  How would you have handled the broken dvd situation?

So while I asked LBM to help me dispose of the broken dvd, I practiced some of the patience I had been given.  You know what I think LBM and I both benefited from the lesson.

Fitting It in?

Like many of you, I read a lot of blogs.  One thing that I read repeatedly is how each of you "fit it in."

I don't want to just "fit it in". 
I don't run each day to simply prepare for the next race.  In fact, I honestly wouldn't need to race very often at all.  I run every day because I enjoy it.  I run because I need to take care of the body I have been given.  I run because I need time to reflect on my day, to focus my thoughts on others, to quiet my mind and pray.  I run to show my children an active healthy lifestyle.  I run because I am a person beyond the roles I play in the friends and family's lives.

Running fills a place inside me that is essential not optional. 

I wonder why so many feel that running or fitness in general is something to be done when we "have time."  Something to be fit in around all the other things in our lives. 
Why is taking care of ourselves considered a luxury instead of a requirement?
Why must I choose between time with my family and time for my health?  Why do people say that I am choosing between the two? 
 I am not. 
I am not choosing to take time from my family to exercise. 
I am choosing to give some of the time I am given each day to making myself a better person so that I am more able to give myself to my family and friends.
Why is it so often seen the other way?

Is this distinction because unlike love that we share with our families, our time is a limited commodity?
If I give love to one child it doesn't lessen the amount I have for another child.
But when I give time to myself each day it is viewed as taking away time from family.
When I get a shower or brush my teeth or have my hair cut or go to the doctor, no one ever tells me I am taking time away from family.  When I scrub the floors or wash my car or clean the bathroom or cooks meals, no one ever tell me I should not be doing that because it's time I should spend with my family.

I wonder.
When in a lifetime does a person lose the ability, luxury, privilege to use some of the time they are given each day on themselves? 
  Doing enriching healthy activities that make you a better person;  isn't that part of what a life is for?

Your thoughts, please.

Commitment

com·mit·ment 

–noun

1. the act of committing.
2. the state of being committed.
3. the act of committing, pledging, or engaging oneself.
4. a pledge or promise; obligation: 
5. engagement; involvement: 
6. perpetration or commission, as of a crime.
7. consignment, as to prison.
8. confinement to a mental institution or hospital:
9. an order, as by a court or judge, confining a person to a mental institution or hospital.
10. Law . a written order of a court directing that someone be confined in prison; mittimus.
11. Parliamentary Procedure . the act of referring or entrusting to a committee for consideration.
12. Stock Exchange .
a. an agreement to buy or sell securities.
b. a sale or purchase of securities.

I reflect on this word today.  The 264th day of my running streak.  

With tonight's run, I will have ran 264 miles for the month

As Dictionary.com defines commitment I wonder how often we forget a few points of it's definition.

No.  I am not talking about the confinement to a mental institution or a court order.  We all may be able to identify with those definitions from time to time. 

I am talking about engaging oneself and involvement.

How often do we simply go through the routine or schedule of our days and not truly engage with our families and friends?  How often are you guilty of simply putting in the miles and not enjoying the act of running?  Isn't that why we are doing this?  Because we enjoy it?

It goes for all areas in our lives, how often do we sit done for a meal and not even taste what we are eating, not really listen to our kids telling us the hundreds of things they ramble on about...

I am sure we would all say that we are committed to our families, our friends, our jobs, our running but are we remembering that part of the commitment is to engage oneself?

As we head into another weekend of long runs and races, let's all remember to fully honor those commitments, to engage ourselves completely.  Perhaps in doing so we will have our journey slightly sweeter, more amazing, anything but ordinary every single day. 

Things to be proud of

This is a face filled with pride.

LBM was so proud of what he had accomplished unattended in the bathroom.

"Happy Mommy?" is what he asked when I saw him from the door way.

We all have things that we love to do.

Things that we feel we are good at and take pride in doing.

For each of us these things are different. 

I have several things that I love to do that make me feel proud of accomplishing them.

I take pride is doing things on my own, like fixing our pellet stove or rehanging the front door.

I enjoy crafting, making cards and headbands.

 At our house I often have show and tell time with Hubbs when he comes home for the weekend.  My wonderful hubbs gets drug lead around the house as I show off all my latest creations and home repairs.

Everyone has something that they do that makes them feel happy and that they just can't wait to share with everyone. 

No one thing is better or more important.

We each just have "our" thing.

Most of us have running as a common passion but rarely are we people of a singular focus.

I remind you all today that there are many things in your life that bring you joy.  There are simple things that fill you with pride. 

Maybe emptying a can of shaving cream all over your head and face won't fill you with pride and make you happy but there are many many things in your day that will or at least can.

LBM so proud of his shaving

What besides running fills you?

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Thought Full Thursday ~ What's on the inside?

Like many of you, we have had a few storms lately.

The previous storm toppled a huge tree where I work.

It was a big surprise!

That tree was full of thick branches loaded with green leaves.

It's outward appearance gave no indication of what it was hiding within.

People are sometime like that too.

We put on a veneer of maybe what we think we are, or what we'd like to be and we present that as who we are.

My children in their often brutal honesty remind me that I am no stranger to attempting to portray what I want to be more than what I am.

Me to a friend in a lengthy conversation about kids and standards:  "Oh, people who lie just drive me crazy!  Why is it so hard for people to allow others to see them make a mistake or something.  Why lie about it?  I just tell the truth and if they don't like it...  Why can't we just be honest with eachother...."

Later....

S'ghetti girl:  "Mom.  Why did you say you don't lie?"

Me:  "What do you mean?"

S'ghetti girl:  "When you were talking with (friend)?

Me:  "Well, I don't think it was your conversation but I didn't say I don't lie.  I probably said I try not to lie."

S'ghetti girl:  "Nope.  You said you don't.  And you do."

Me:  "How do I lie?"

S'ghetti girl:  "Like when you tell (LBM) that the remote disappeared because you don't want him to have it. Or when you..."

Me:  "Ok.  Ok.  You're right.  But I meant to tell (friend) that I TRY not to lie."

Day# 144

That conversation just got me thinking about what else I might think I say or do and fall short or misrepresent.  Here in bloggy world you have only my words to come to know me.

Of course we all attempt to relay the best possible version of ourselves.

I wonder sometimes, how much we'd all like each other if for one day we were all as honest as children?

Do your children ever help you notice short comings in your own personal journey?

Tell me about it.

Proverbs 12:17A truthful witness gives honest testimony, but a false witness tells lies. 

Wondering on Wednesday

My life continues it's daily routine.  The damage from my fall is steadily healing.

The kids are up to their normal antics.

Hubbs and I are preparing for our 20k Relay on Saturday.

Life is good...but...

Day # 136 ~ 3.5 / 27:25

opps actually this is a shot from last night's 6.5 ~ 56 flat

This is from this morning's run ~ Juvenile Red spotted newt

...I may have some of you believing that I am only about running but I am in fact a person with slightly deeper thoughts (occasionally).

I saw this article:

CLICK HERE

and it got me wondering.

It is about an impending execution.  Yeah.  Got your attention on that one.

It will be the first time since 1912 that the state of Virginia has executed a woman. 

I am wondering.

 

What you do think about this?

Whether you live in Virginia or not.  Whether you think it matters that it is a woman or not.  Whether you think you can change anything or not. 

Simply because we are all people with opinions beyond our running/fitness interests,

How do you feel about this issue?

Three Things Thursday ~ Choices Edition

It's going to be a great day!

Day # 130 ~ 3.5 / 27:08

1)  I have ran 40 miles in the last five days.  I averaged a 7:44 pace on this morning's run!
It's raining outside which means I might ditch my p.m. miles or have to run on the treadmill.  Yuckish.

2)  I got to spend the morning's drive with LBM and my mommy! 
 Mom was with us to bring Hubb's car home from the garage.  I just dished out over $300 in car repairs

3)  I remembered to bring my thermos of coffee from home today.  Yummy and savings!
LBM wouldn't go to bed until after midnight and then was up three times through the night.


It's all about how you look at things.  It's about choosing a positive attitude. 

What happened in your day that you can choose to look at differently?


"Whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there by any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."
~ Philippians 4:8




"A Christian should always remember that the value of his good works is not based on their number and excellence, but on the love of God which prompts him to do these things."... St. John of the Cross


Heather @ Run faster mommy  is hosting a Brooks Giveaway.
I just know I'm gonna win!
It's all about attitude.

Admit you made a mistake

Run# 93 (3.5/28:xx) Friday a.m.

It just dawned on me.

You know how everyone is wearing capri pants?  They are not quite shorts so you can wear them to work and they're not quite long pants so you don't feel as hot.  In fact, I don't know a lady who doesn't wear them.

You, too?

Well, my moment of genius came today as I was wearing my blue capri pants.  I realized that the capri pant was probably born from some one trying to not admit that they had made a mistake.

You don't believe me? Well let me explain.

I theorize that in some big fashion house there was a designer who was sending an order of pants to their manufacturer.  In submitting the design they inadvertently wrote down the wrong length. 

See my brilliance?

Not wanting to admit they had made a mistake, they claimed the new fashion was intentional.

So now we are all walking around in flood pants so that someone did not have to say they made a mistake.

So next time you are looking to offer an excuse, a reason or out right deny that you made a mistake, consider the consequences.

So before taking pictures of your behind becomes viral in bloggy land let me be the first to say, close up of my backside.  Maybe a mistake.

I'm just saying.

More Animal Inspiration

If you change the way you look at things,

the things you look at change.

This snake IS crawling along a vertical wall.

If you find yourself feeling like you've hit the wall and just having no where else to go, remember there is always a way to overcome any obstacle. 

Today was a busy day.  My day started a 5 a.m. with LBM getting up at at the crack of dawn, I had a virtual race to run, a daughter to pick up from her very first sleep over, an early soccer game to get to, a new cell phone to take back because it was on the fritz, a movie to watch with "first sleep over" daughter to celebrate her overcoming her fear, time to spend with Hubbs; all while doing a few chores around the house and tending to LBM and exchanging a few text messages with Army son. 

I wondered how I was going to pull it all off.

But it has been a great day!

I was able to get LBM to lay back down with Daddy so I could go run for Tonia's Rock Your Socks Off virtual race.  After I got back at the house and showered, I made the family breakfast, picked up s'ghetti girl and headed off to the soccer game.  The great weather I enjoyed on my run (race report to come tomorrow) quickly disappeared and it started to rain.  Both teams played well despite the rain however we lost 5 - 8. 

We didn't let that dampen our day.  S'ghetti girl played hard and did her best, we congratulated her and her teammates and headed off to take care of the cell phone and see a movie.

Boy we are all glad to be home again.  Finally Hubbs and I can spend a little time together relaxing. 

A rainy evening spent with the family after action packed day.

Life is Good.

The early bird...

...gets the worm.

This is so true in many areas of our lives.

Running. 

How great it is to start your day with your run.  Freeing up the rest of your day and avoiding those life and family issues that seems to always pop up.

Life.

Today I went to another doctor.  I test my blood sugar and for me it has been a little high.  So I went to head off any trouble that might be brewing. 

Family.

Be the first to say you are sorry, the first to hold your tongue, the first to forgive...

What are some ways you are the "early bird" in your life that have helped you along your way?