THE CLOCK OF LIFE

I sit at the computer this unusually lovely Saturday late afternoon drinking a warm cup of Starbucks French press coffee and reflecting on the active week that I have had. I am constantly trying to find a balance with my hectic life schedule. Somehow, I must fit in workouts, runs, full time job, family etc. I have certainly realized how precious time is in many ways. Time is such an important, yet overlooked virtue that we often take for granted. But first, before I talk about time I'll give a summary of my weekly workouts.
It started out perfectly. I attended my first triathlon swim class this Monday at 6 am and I loved it. I'm learning to find my 'balance' in the water. I'm also learning not to fight the water but glide through the water to preserve energy and be more 'stroke' efficient. I'm going to learn a lot and am very glad that I signed up for this swim class. My other 6 am classes were Tuesday and Thursday boot camp and Wednesday and Friday group strength. Great classes and glad I'm doing them. I can only hope that they will help make me a stronger runner. After my workouts I shower and head straight to work, which happens to be a very convenient 3 minute drive from the gym.  
I had started the week with the goal of watching my diet. I need to 'lean' up for the Ironman so my intentions were to focus on eating frequent, small amounts of healthy foods.  Unfortunately, in the job that I do as an RN Case Manager at a Specialty Hospital I am 'marketed' a lot by vendors seeking my referrals.  So it started out on Monday morning with fresh, warm, home made sugar cookies from a home health agency.  Then a catered lunch of smoked barbecued brisket with mashed potatoes & gravy and yet more cookies from a medical equipment company. Then  the most wonderful Bavarian cream pastry that I have ever tasted from a TPN company, followed by a whole package of Butterfinger candy bars from a skilled nursing facility. You get the jest of it, lots and lots of unhealthy crap! Unfortunately it all jumped right into my mouth! I couldn't help it.  I was a victim! It came at me every day, from all directions, screaming "EAT ME". When I wasn't even near it and it innocently sat on my desk and I was clear down at the nurses station, I could hear it call my name. It was horrible! A junk food fest-frenzy fit only for the biggest of the bariatric!  Yes, I succumbed. Normally, when I get this food, I politely say thank you to the gift bearer and quickly take it to the nurses station for all the employee's to eat. But this week, I was selfish! I ate it all, yes I did!! And it was good! Oh, so very good! O.K. enough about my feeding frenzy, and back to the diary of my quest to the Ironman.  
Today, I squeezed my now bigger butt into my CR-W tights and stiffly headed out the door praying that I would not have a 'blow out' and cause permanent emotional damage to everyone who happened to witness it (Please God, let the seams be stitched with steel). My hubby, my dear friend Denise and I met my running group at Sequiota Park this morning at 8am.  I had not run with these wonderful women since the Bass Pro Marathon.  We had all disassembled and normally resume our runs back up again in May to train for the Bass Pro again.  But this time I had received an email from our group leader Zoe who stated that they were getting together to run this Saturday.  So we joined them.  I can honestly say that I was thrilled to see everyone! It was so good to run with them and I felt like I was 'home'.  If you have never been a part of a running group, I strongly encourage it.  There is a bond like no other when you train, sweat and endure with a group of people for months on end and then complete a marathon with them. It made me realize how precious these ladies are to me.  For 14.3 miles we chatted like old times as if we had never missed a run. The time  that we spend together is precious.  Which takes me back to the beginning of this blog...time.  To reflect very seriously on how you spend your time is of the utmost importance.  At the end of your life are you going to remember the couch and TV shows that you watched, or are you going to remember the times where you challenged yourself?  I can assure you this, the one thing you will look back on are your accomplishments, whatever that may be i.e. going back to school at a late age, trying a new class, running a marathon, or trying a triathlon. Have you ever inspired anyone? Made a difference in a person's life, the community, etc.? I believe it is important in one's life fulfillment to ask yourself these questions.  Life is too short to make sitting on the couch a priority. Even if you fail, doesn't that beat sitting on the couch? At least you had the guts to try it.
This morning as we pulled up to the park, it was a cold, dreary 40 degrees.  It was also raining, which made it feel that much more cold (The weather ended up clearing up during the run and you could not have asked for a more perfect day for a run). There were about 20 vehicles parked in the parking lot. I laughed and pointed out to my husband.  "Look, every vehicle here has a 26.2 sticker on their back windshields." He laughed and stated, "Because we are the only ones foolish enough to be out here in this."  But in fact, it was guts.  Guts that got us all out on this dreary day, and guts that will carry us through to the end.  These men and women have completed a great accomplishment and proudly display their accomplishment on their windshields.  What are you displaying on your windshield? Will you look back in the end and 'wished' you had done something? Why not now? When is there a better time...there may never be.  Appreciate this moment, for it will never be again. So I end this blog with this little poem that I found. I hope that you are as inspired and blessed by it as I was.

The Clock of Life is wound but once 

And no man has the power 

To tell just when the hands will stop 

At late or early hour. 

Now is the only time we own 

Love, live, toil with will, 

Do not wait until tomorrow, 

For the Clock may then be still.

Namaste'

RUNNING WITH WOMEN

Yesterday morning I ran 23 miles with my running group. I sat that afternoon, nursing my sore muscles and basking in the glow of accomplishing this feat. Outside our open windows the grey skies let go a sweet melancholy rain which caused me to reflect upon how this all began...
I signed up for the Bass Pro Marathon training group last year with one single goal in mind : To train for a marathon and to do it in a way to keep me from getting injured. What I didn't expect was that the benefits of this group would be beyond just running and finishing a marathon. They were, to put it mildly,much greater, richer and deeper than I ever imagined.

I joined the Springfield MO Galloway training goup last may in 2008. I nervously showed up to run on a warm and humid morning at 6:00am with a lot of apprehension. Besides running with my husband, I had always ran alone and was somewhat of a 'lone runner' and enjoyed my quiet time. So needless to say I thought that I would give it a try and if I didn't like it then I gave myself permission to drop out and continue to run on my own. 

So I started my run with the group, and after running with these women for several weeks I found that I was developing relationships. I quickly discovered that I was running with witty, interesting, well-read, creative, compassionate, professional, beautiful and authentic women. While we ran we chatted about the latest books we had read and soon started sharing books, we talked about our children, husbands, work, dogs and lended ears to personal problems. As each one of our feet hit the pavement and sweat dripped from our brows we rhythmically pounded out ideas, solutions, projects and new goals.

My husband has come to understand and appreciate the wholeness that I feel after I have sweated with these women for hours on end on Saturday mornings.  He knows it makes me a better wife,mother, employee,nurse and artist. In short,he gladly gives up our precious time together so I can be a better person. 

This is the second year that I have ran with this group. We have had new women join and as a result our group becomes even more interesting and rich as these new ladies bring a different and fresh perspective to enrich our lives.

As a group, our ultimate goal is to cross the finish line to obtain the coveted 'Bass Pro Fish Medal' and to proudly display the 26.2 sticker on our Vehicles. But ultimately each one of us will leave the group with an unexpected cohesiveness.  One that can only come with striving together for months, sweating and encouraging each other as our runs became longer and more difficult.  When we cross that finish line in November there will be a bittersweet sensation. One: of knowing that each one of us has accomplished a life goal and two: it marks the end of our regular group runs at 6:00am until next Spring.

The Bass Pro Marathon will be ran on November 1st at 7:00am. But we will walk away that day, with our medals around our necks,changed forever. For I know that our running group has made each one of us realize and appreciate that some people come into our lives and quickly go. Others stay awhile, make footprints on our hearts and we are never,ever the same.

Nov. 2008 Right Before the Bass Pro Marathon

       Nov. 2008 -During The Marathon                           

After the Marathon w/the Coveted 'Fish Medal'