Hallo! We are just about to say 'good-bye' and 'good luck' to our young soldier. I have tried to pack as much fun into the month of June as I could. It will be his only month of summer vacation, so I wanted it to be fun and memorable.
We had family pictures taken. I'll post some as soon as I get them from Miss Saren (Mrs., actually, but she'll always be a young 'Miss' to me, since I'm turning into an old person). We swam. We went to the movies. We ate out more often than we could technically afford. We BBQ-ed. We had bonfires in the back yard. We went to the lake and windsurfed/kayaked/stowed away on some dude's catamaran (only Will did the last part, but, HEY! sounds cool). And, I took him and his 'battle buddy', Private Paul, up to the Solomon Center in Ogden (2 hr. round trip) so they could do indoor skydiving/rock climbing/indoor surfing! That was a fun day! Well, all except realizing when we got home that he had lost his dog tags. GAH!!! I went into panic mode. They have his name and SS number on them! I know he will be issued new tags when he arrives at Basic. Most new recruits get their first tags at Basic. Will has had dog tags for almost a year, however, because he enlisted last July and has been serving in his Reserve unit ever since. He has already received a promotion, in fact, and will be doing Basic as a Private 2nd Class.
Anyways, I hurried and called every venue up in Ogden and asked for them to look for the tags. And, wouldn't you know it, THEY FOUND THEM! HOORAY! The Flowrider staff found them over by the Costa Vida (where we ate dinner). They are going to mail them back to us, so we don't have to drive for 2 hours to retrieve them. One of life's little blessings!
So, I'm down to counting hours before my son leaves for this big adventure. I'm excited for him, but I'm sad for me. I will miss him something fierce! When Helena moved out, I stood in her room several times and just teared up over missing her... even though she was only two towns over and often brought her laundry home &/or came "shopping" in my pantry. This will be much harder. I have no doubt I will spend some maudlin moments in his room, too. I'm extra thankful that Helena moved back home. That will make this easier for me.
No Skype. No phone calls. No texts.
Only snail mail.
They will give him his mail once a week, and make him earn it with push ups. No packages allowed. Just words of encouragement and photos. He WILL get to call me once on the day after he arrives at the base, to let me know he arrived safely. After that, he MIGHT be allowed to call every few weeks... if he earns it &/or the Drill Sargent is in the mood.
Meanwhile, I have to move on with my plans for the summer.
Normally, I have a routine planned out from day one of summer break. Not this year. I let June roll over me in one big jumble of activity. So, starting July 1st, I am getting back into a schedule. Not a rigid-my-days-are-packed kind of schedule. Just a routine.
Get up at 6
Work out from 7-9 (this could be walking/jogging/bike riding/weights/whatever)
Yard work (and house repairs) until lunch at 11:30
housework for an hour after lunch
personal improvement (sketching/painting/Rosetta Stone) for two hours in the afternoon.
Unplug at 8
Swim from 8:30 to 9:30
Bed at 10
There are some rigid time frames in there. Notably the getting up/exercising/going to bed times. I find I do better at exercise if I am more rigid with it. The rest can shift as needed, and it leaves me plenty of 'down' time to be a lazy summer slug and lounge around poolside or on the porch. I need that just as much as the exercise! And, of course, there will be some interruptions to that plan. The Steel Days Art Show will consume a week in mid-July, and I will be teaching children's community art classes for a week in late July.
Saturdays and Sundays won't have all that going on. Those days will be pretty unstructured.
Actually, I plan to use my Saturdays to work on Will's room. It is due for an overhaul. I won't say more, now. Just know I have some exciting plans that I hope to surprise him with when he comes home!
So, I say farewell to my boy, and hope to welcome him back 6 months from now as a soldier and a man.
Showing posts with label resolutions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label resolutions. Show all posts
The Workout Schedule
I have set stuff I like to do. I like to swim. I like to run. I like to ride my bike. Triathlon stuff.
So, I'll revisit my old triathlon type training and see where that takes me.
I think this year I'll make Saturday and Sunday my rest days. At least until summer vacation. That will give me the time I need to get weekend chores done and spend time with the family, I hope.
So, I'm splitting my workouts into two categories; MWF and TTh.
MWF will be running training and weights/core work. My running goal for the next 10 weeks is to speed up on my 5K. I average 31 minutes with a best time of 28 minutes. In 10 weeks I want 28 minutes to be the new average time for the 5K distance. We'll see what my new best time will become! I have an app called 5K Forever that I will be working with to try and meet this goal. The app is designed specifically to help 5K runners improve their time, so I'm excited to give it a go! Today was my first day using the app and it went well.
Core work means situps, pushups, squats, lunges, and planks. My 10 week end goal is 200 situps, 100 pushups, 100 squats, 200 lunges, and 120 second planks. Weights will be just maintenance stuff on my arms.
TTh workouts will be cycle class and swimming. The swimming is iffy, because TTh are long lanes, which means less available lanes (short lanes can be up to 8 lanes, long lanes are at max of 5). With the Resolutioners in the gym, I might not get a lane for a little while, but I'll do my best. I haven't created specific goals for cycle and swim. Just to do them and push myself each day. Work on form and endurance, mostly.
Resolutioners! It's that time of year, again. Today was great. There was no crowd, yet. I expect the crowds will hit just after the annual pass sale and fitness fair next week. Ugh. They all sign up, plunk down their money for an annual pass, crowd out the regulars for two months, then disappear. Most equipment breakage happens during this time because they also bring along their kids, who abuse the equipment.
I'm really not against New Year's Resolutions! I just really believe in only making goals I intend to achieve. Why would you spend the money and not follow through? Why give up after only a few weeks? Why do there have to be so many of them that I can't get my workouts done? The gym oversells knowing many will quit. So in January and February the facility is really over capacity.
Still, some of them end up turning into regulars, and in that case, they are very welcome! For now, I'll have to show up early to cycle class in order to get my preferred bike, and I might have to get creative with my running workouts if all the treadmills are taken.
So, I'll revisit my old triathlon type training and see where that takes me.
I think this year I'll make Saturday and Sunday my rest days. At least until summer vacation. That will give me the time I need to get weekend chores done and spend time with the family, I hope.
So, I'm splitting my workouts into two categories; MWF and TTh.
MWF will be running training and weights/core work. My running goal for the next 10 weeks is to speed up on my 5K. I average 31 minutes with a best time of 28 minutes. In 10 weeks I want 28 minutes to be the new average time for the 5K distance. We'll see what my new best time will become! I have an app called 5K Forever that I will be working with to try and meet this goal. The app is designed specifically to help 5K runners improve their time, so I'm excited to give it a go! Today was my first day using the app and it went well.
Core work means situps, pushups, squats, lunges, and planks. My 10 week end goal is 200 situps, 100 pushups, 100 squats, 200 lunges, and 120 second planks. Weights will be just maintenance stuff on my arms.
TTh workouts will be cycle class and swimming. The swimming is iffy, because TTh are long lanes, which means less available lanes (short lanes can be up to 8 lanes, long lanes are at max of 5). With the Resolutioners in the gym, I might not get a lane for a little while, but I'll do my best. I haven't created specific goals for cycle and swim. Just to do them and push myself each day. Work on form and endurance, mostly.
Resolutioners! It's that time of year, again. Today was great. There was no crowd, yet. I expect the crowds will hit just after the annual pass sale and fitness fair next week. Ugh. They all sign up, plunk down their money for an annual pass, crowd out the regulars for two months, then disappear. Most equipment breakage happens during this time because they also bring along their kids, who abuse the equipment.
I'm really not against New Year's Resolutions! I just really believe in only making goals I intend to achieve. Why would you spend the money and not follow through? Why give up after only a few weeks? Why do there have to be so many of them that I can't get my workouts done? The gym oversells knowing many will quit. So in January and February the facility is really over capacity.
Still, some of them end up turning into regulars, and in that case, they are very welcome! For now, I'll have to show up early to cycle class in order to get my preferred bike, and I might have to get creative with my running workouts if all the treadmills are taken.
2014
Hello there.
Bet you thought I'd forgotten my little online journal.
Nope.
I've just gotten way too distracted by life.
But, I'm here, now. And I'm gonna try to stay with it.
It's a time for new resolutions, after all!
That's right! WELCOME TO 2014 AND THE NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION POST!
I'm a goal setting kind of person. I don't get too bent out of shape if I fail to reach them all... I just like to set them and see how far it takes me. So, here goes!
Last Sunday, the bishop mentioned some advice he'd been giving on setting goals. He called them goals, not resolutions, because you really should be constantly assessing, adjusting, and setting goals. It is not just a New Year thing. Anyways, he said the advice was to set 3 health goals for yourself... one for physical health, one for mental health, and one for spiritual health. That sounds like a great idea.
Of course, I have a boatload of PHYSICAL HEALTH goals I'd like to tackle.
For instance, I want to;
Bet you thought I'd forgotten my little online journal.
Nope.
I've just gotten way too distracted by life.
But, I'm here, now. And I'm gonna try to stay with it.
It's a time for new resolutions, after all!
That's right! WELCOME TO 2014 AND THE NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION POST!
I'm a goal setting kind of person. I don't get too bent out of shape if I fail to reach them all... I just like to set them and see how far it takes me. So, here goes!
Last Sunday, the bishop mentioned some advice he'd been giving on setting goals. He called them goals, not resolutions, because you really should be constantly assessing, adjusting, and setting goals. It is not just a New Year thing. Anyways, he said the advice was to set 3 health goals for yourself... one for physical health, one for mental health, and one for spiritual health. That sounds like a great idea.
Of course, I have a boatload of PHYSICAL HEALTH goals I'd like to tackle.
For instance, I want to;
- Get to bed 'early' every night. 'Early' means 10-10:30 nightly (as I type this at 11:30 pm). The problem with that is that I still have a wandering teen in the house to wait up for on occasion. And, lets face it, I'm a night owl and have to force myself to bed most nights. Grrrr. Instead, I want to set a goal to try for 8 HOURS OF SLEEP per night. I think I can manage that, most of the time.
- Get up at 6 am every school day to MAKE BREAKFAST FOR WILL. That one is more for Will's physical/mental health than for mine. I know. I'm a horrible mother! Most mornings he rolls out of bed at 7:20 am and leaves for school at 7:30... with no breakfast. I've never been one of those "let me feed you all the meals" kind of people. Still, I'm gonna try! That means I will have to strive for that 10 pm bedtime on school nights if I'm gonna make that first goal.
- BUILD A NEW WORKOUT SCHEDULE AND STICK TO IT. I've fallen off the workout wagon, somewhat. And by fallen off, I mean I'm still holding on to the wagon and am being dragged in the dirt behind it. I've struggled all through the holidays. I'm making it to about 1/2 of my scheduled workouts each week. I know I can do better. I know I will feel better if I do better. So, I will.
- BREAK THE STUPID SODA HABIT! Here's another wagon I fell off of, people. Gah! Stupid, stupid soda! Why does sugar have to taste so good?! I feel like this is my Achilles heel. My willpower battle royale. So, I will keep up the fight and try again.
- GO TO THE DOCTOR and have the various things taken care of that need attention. Vericose veins & moles. I met my deductible this year, so I might as well take care of stuff. ya know?
MENTAL HEALTH Goals
- DE-CLUTTER. I want to pick one room each month and get rid of as much as I possibly can. Clear out the accumulation of 13-14 years of living in one place. You know what I mean. Things can pile up over time. Papers and books and nick-nacks. Picture frames I meant to paint all black, fill with pictures, and hang on the wall; but are instead all piled in a corner of the dining room gathering dust. The puzzle that was built and mod-podged, but is waiting on top of the dryer for me to find a 22"x24" (or was it x28"?) frame so I can hang it on the wall. All those random bits and pieces of living that need a proper home, or just simply need to go away permanently. How is that mental health, you ask? A cluttered home = a cluttered mind. I think I could focus better with a more spartan house.
- KEEP UP WITH ROSETTA STONE. I have been working on learning Spanish with Rosetta Stone. I work at a Spanish Immersion elementary school, and the administration has provided Rosetta Stone for all the teachers and students to use. Really such a great resource! I could have chosen any language to work on, and I was tempted to brush up my French. But, I want to learn Spanish, for work. Learning a language should keep my mind sharp, especially since it sometimes feels like some of the gears are starting to slip from time to time.
- KEEP UP WITH MY BLOG. This is my journal. I need a place to crystalize my thoughts, and this is that place. It is such a shame that so many good thoughts got lost over the months that I neglected to write. I focus my writing on the positive events in my life, and it helps ME to stay positive. Otherwise, I might let the negative creep in and get too much of a foothold in my life. Keep your sharing POSITIVE! Whether in a blog, or on Facebook, only record the positive. You get back what you send out, so be careful what you send out there!
SPIRITUAL HEALTH Goals
- RENEW MY TEMPLE RECOMMEND. I haven't held a current recommend in years. I don't really have a good reason. Just laziness. I'm a slacker. I need to rededicate myself and get back to the temple. I'm looking forward to some Celestial Room meditations.
- PRAYERS/SCRIPTURES EVERY MORNING. That's gonna be part of the getting up at 6 am gig. I'm shooting for a morning something like this: 15 min. me time (potty, stretching), 15 min. prayer/scriptures, 30 min. breakfast prep., have breakfast with Will (& hopefully Helena), send Will out the door at 7:30, get myself ready for work & out the door around 8:15.
So, there you have it. I'm not good at the one goal per section kind of thing. Still, I like my goals and I'm looking forward to implementing them. Tomorrow I think I'll build that workout schedule!
If you are setting goals this week, I wish you all the best in achieving them! I'm no cynic about New Year's Resolutions... I've accomplished many of mine over the years, so I know they are worthwhile endeavors.
So, set your goals and chase 'em down!
Cheers to a bright 2014!
26.2
The race began in Walsburg at 6 am. In order to be ready at the starting line, Bill and I had to get up at 2:30 am, so he could drive me down to the shuttle buses in Provo. There were over 2,000 registered entrants for the full marathon, so the organizers said there would be no private drop off at the start of the race (Walsburg is a SMALL town up in the mountains).
2:30 is stupidly early.
I tried to get a full night sleep Thursday night. Utter fail. I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, then Bill's 5 am alarm woke me up completely. I normally sleep right through it.
So, I tried to get a full night sleep Friday night before the race...
Fail.
I would have had to go to bed at 6 pm to get a full 8 hours. That's never gonna happen. So, the goal was 8 pm, but that time shot by as well. I finally did get in bed at 9 pm...
... then got a phone call at 10 pm and was wide awake for another 30 minutes or more.
Still, 2:30 am arrived.
I did pretty well at eating my breakfast of oatmeal and a banana. OK, so I only ate half the banana.
I had packed and arranged all my race day gear the night before, so I didn't have to worry about forgetting anything. I planned to run with a water belt even though there were water/aid stations throughout the course. I refuel with Shot Blocks and the race only offered Gu gels. It's important not to change what you do on race day, so the water belt was more to carry my fuel of choice than for the water. Although it did prove useful to have a little water on me whenever I wanted to rinse the sweat out of my eyes. I greased myself up with Vaseline to prevent chafing, got dressed, and was ready to leave by 3:00.
Bill dropped me off at the bus loading zone and took off into the mountains for some early morning biking. I got in line for the bus and met a man named Jason. We chatted about the race and our families the whole way up to the starting drop off zone. I tell you what. That was a LONG bus ride! I remember a feeling of panic when riding the shuttle for the half marathon. This was worse. 26 miles is a long way.
The bus dropped us off at 4:30 am alongside a ranch. The rancher allowed the runners to use his pasture for a staging area. The whole pasture was full of campfires for the runners to keep warm.
It seemed like most of the people there were running with a friend. I was alone. So, I asked to join a group at their campfire. It turned out that most of that group knew each other and had run several other marathons together. Still, they were friendly and supportive. We ended up sitting in that prickly field grass playing campfire games until it was time to turn in our drop bags and line up at the starting line.
Drop bags are used to stuff your warm-up gear and anything else you want to bring to the race. The organizers chuck them all in a rental truck and haul it down to the finish line for you. After the race, you can collect your drop bag because it has your bib number attached to it. Mine had my sweat jacket (for before the race), my flip-flops (for after the race), tissues and other random minor items.
Lining up for a race, you find a race pacer holding a sign with the time you want to try to finish the race in. The fastest race pacers are to the front of the line. I headed to the back of the line. Let's face it. I know I'm not fast. My only goal was to actually finish this monster. Based on my longest training run, I thought I'd be doing really great if I finished in 5 hours, but the reality would probably be closer to 5 1/2 hours.
In the final countdown everyone around me was chatting and getting encouragement from each other and from the race pacer nearest us. In fact, I was so caught up in listening to the chatter that the race began before I even realized! The big surge only happens at the front of the column. At the back, we just started walking calmly forward until we got to the starting arch, then began our run.
I won't give you a blow by blow of every single awesome-beautiful-uplifting-inspiring-challenging-tough-discouraging-painful-agonizing mile. Instead, here are some highlights...
The early part of the race was cool because we were high in the mountains and the sun wasn't up, yet. The mid part of the race was cool because we were still in the canyon and the cliffs formed huge shadows that keep a near perpetual pre-sunrise chill in the air. The last part of the race was HOT because we were out of the canyon, running in the full blaze of the summer sun in the middle of the city.
Oh, the scenery was beautiful! I live here and I know the canyon very well. Still, running through it gives so much more time to soak in the views than driving it. Rolling hills, red barns, white rail fences, shimmering water in the river and the reservoir, green pine forests, rugged cliffs, waterfalls, and wildflowers.
For a downhill course, there sure were plenty of uphills. I knew I couldn't run the entire course non-stop, so I decided to walk the uphills. That way I could use the momentum of the downhill running to try to improve on my training time. That seemed to work well. When an uphill section drew near, I picked a spot on the hill where I would give myself permission to slow to a walk. Then, as I neared the crest, I chose another spot there I had to start running again.
Once, while I was walking an uphill, another participant joined me. I couldn't tell her age. She might have been my age; she might have been younger. Her hair was bleached white and her skin was very dark. She looked too trim and fit to be with us slower runners, but at the same time, she looked like she had lived life hard and fast... if that makes any sense. We chatted for a while and she told me all about the person she was supposed to be running with in the race. He was her boyfriend and chose to run with her despite not being a runner himself. He used to be clean and sober, but had recently fallen off the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking weed again. He had fallen behind and she was worried about him. She was walking in the hopes that he would catch up to her.
Then she told me that he hits her, sometimes.
Holy $*#@!
I had listened to her tale about her boyfriend and held my tongue, despite thinking he was pathetic, but I couldn't remain quiet any longer. I told her emphatically that she needed to leave him! I advised her to turn him in to the authorities. I told her she deserved better and that NO ONE had the right to hit her! I asked her if she had family near by (she is living with her parents). We were well on the downhill side and my "run" marker had come and gone, but I kept walking and talking with her.
In the end, I had to leave her. I couldn't walk the whole race. I wished her well and continued on my way. I don't remember her name, and I will probably never see her again, but I hope she finds the courage to get him out of her life!
Other runners came and went on my radar. Only a few others stand out, for me.
One such runner was named John. He and I had been leap frogging for most of the lower canyon. We walked together for a little while at the base of the canyon. He was an older gentleman with a handlebar mustache. This was his 300th marathon.
300th!!!
He started running them in the 80's. He was so friendly. He complimented me on my "power walk" (I wouldn't let my walking speed drop below 4 1/2 mph) and advised me to cut from corner to corner of the road on turns to make sure I wasn't adding mileage to the race. I told him my hope to finish at around 5hr 15min and he said that while it'd be tough, he believed I could make it. He pulled away as we entered the city. I could see him turning to look back and check on me every once and a while. But he had some amazing reserves of speed in him that weren't in me, so I watched him go and kept on going at the best pace I could manage...
...because by then I was in pain.
Oh! The first half of the race was SO BEAUTIFUL! I really enjoyed the first 15 miles. In fact, it wasn't until around mile 18 that I started to hurt. Mile 21 is when it truly got tough. By then I was in new territory. I had never pushed myself that far, before. By mile 23, I was in agony. My knees hurt, but it was my feet that were causing my distress. They were on FIRE! Every step was piercing. It felt like I was ripping the soles off my feet. At one point, my mind was entirely filled with the pain in my feet until I finally had to tell myself, "yes, there is pain. It is not going away. Accept it, put it out of your mind, and keep going."
The last 3 miles felt like they lasted forever. My body wanted to quit, but my mind was locked and rock solid. I was gonna finish this thing. Only 3 measly miles stood between me and my goal. There were water stations at every mile marker for those last 3 miles, so I drank a Powerade, drank a water, and doused myself with a water each time and forced myself to keep moving forward.
I don't think I can put into words the feeling when I saw the finish line in the distance. Overwhelming emotions! Knowing it was almost over, if I could just hold out a little bit longer! I had sent Bill texts at 13.1 miles, 10 miles, 5, 3, 2, and 1 mile. I forced myself to run the last half mile non-stop. I wanted to finish strong.
Mom, Dad, and Paul (my brother-in-law) were waiting to cheer me at the 26 mile marker. Bill and Will were at the finish line. I found out later that my visiting teaching partner, Leanna, came down and watched me finish without telling me she was going to do so! She is so awesome!
Yes, I choked up as I crossed the line.
Bill and Will came to find me right away. Bill had made up an entire lunch cooler full of post race awesomeness! He made a bottle of chocolate milk mixed just the way I like it. He had a couple of frozen bottles of water that he used as a roller massage on my legs and to ice my knees. There was a protein shake and a couple of Cokes. He and Will ended up drinking the Cokes, though. I didn't want them. Will went and got my drop bag for me so I could strip off the shoes and socks and put my flip-flops on.
Mom, Dad, and Paul found me and we all sat on the City Hall steps as Bill massaged my legs. You are supposed to walk off the race, not sit down and, yes, I did walk around all afternoon, but I'll save that story for another post.
My official time was 5 hours, 19 minutes, 10 seconds. That is just crazy! Who would want to spend that much time running?! Me, apparently.
After saying good-bye to Mom, Dad, and Paul, we headed to the car. Bill had parked it on the second level of a parking structure, so Will and I waited in the shade while Bill brought it down. There was no way I wanted to walk up to it. While we waited, my campfire buddies came walking up! And... John was with them! They all recognized me and we high-fived (and John gave me a hug) as they congratulated me on completing my first marathon. One of them pointed out to me that there was a blister on the side of my foot. I hadn't even noticed it. The pain in the soles of my feet had completely masked it.
So, here we are... A day later. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) has set in with a vengeance. I feel like someone has beaten me with a baseball bat. Everything from my chest down just HURTS! I can barely stand. Besides the blister, I also have 4 toenails (two on each foot) that look like they are going to die and fall off.
But, I am so very happy! I conquered myself and completed this huge goal. Now I plan to enjoy my summer just doing whatever workout strikes my fancy. Running will return to its rightful place as only one of many things I like to do, instead of consuming all my workouts.
Thanks to everyone who has supported my in this crazy journey to marathon! It means a lot to me.
Will I ever do it again?
I think so!
2:30 is stupidly early.
I tried to get a full night sleep Thursday night. Utter fail. I couldn't fall asleep until after midnight, then Bill's 5 am alarm woke me up completely. I normally sleep right through it.
So, I tried to get a full night sleep Friday night before the race...
Fail.
I would have had to go to bed at 6 pm to get a full 8 hours. That's never gonna happen. So, the goal was 8 pm, but that time shot by as well. I finally did get in bed at 9 pm...
... then got a phone call at 10 pm and was wide awake for another 30 minutes or more.
Still, 2:30 am arrived.
I did pretty well at eating my breakfast of oatmeal and a banana. OK, so I only ate half the banana.
I had packed and arranged all my race day gear the night before, so I didn't have to worry about forgetting anything. I planned to run with a water belt even though there were water/aid stations throughout the course. I refuel with Shot Blocks and the race only offered Gu gels. It's important not to change what you do on race day, so the water belt was more to carry my fuel of choice than for the water. Although it did prove useful to have a little water on me whenever I wanted to rinse the sweat out of my eyes. I greased myself up with Vaseline to prevent chafing, got dressed, and was ready to leave by 3:00.
Bill dropped me off at the bus loading zone and took off into the mountains for some early morning biking. I got in line for the bus and met a man named Jason. We chatted about the race and our families the whole way up to the starting drop off zone. I tell you what. That was a LONG bus ride! I remember a feeling of panic when riding the shuttle for the half marathon. This was worse. 26 miles is a long way.
The bus dropped us off at 4:30 am alongside a ranch. The rancher allowed the runners to use his pasture for a staging area. The whole pasture was full of campfires for the runners to keep warm.
It seemed like most of the people there were running with a friend. I was alone. So, I asked to join a group at their campfire. It turned out that most of that group knew each other and had run several other marathons together. Still, they were friendly and supportive. We ended up sitting in that prickly field grass playing campfire games until it was time to turn in our drop bags and line up at the starting line.
Drop bags are used to stuff your warm-up gear and anything else you want to bring to the race. The organizers chuck them all in a rental truck and haul it down to the finish line for you. After the race, you can collect your drop bag because it has your bib number attached to it. Mine had my sweat jacket (for before the race), my flip-flops (for after the race), tissues and other random minor items.
Lining up for a race, you find a race pacer holding a sign with the time you want to try to finish the race in. The fastest race pacers are to the front of the line. I headed to the back of the line. Let's face it. I know I'm not fast. My only goal was to actually finish this monster. Based on my longest training run, I thought I'd be doing really great if I finished in 5 hours, but the reality would probably be closer to 5 1/2 hours.
In the final countdown everyone around me was chatting and getting encouragement from each other and from the race pacer nearest us. In fact, I was so caught up in listening to the chatter that the race began before I even realized! The big surge only happens at the front of the column. At the back, we just started walking calmly forward until we got to the starting arch, then began our run.
I won't give you a blow by blow of every single awesome-beautiful-uplifting-inspiring-challenging-tough-discouraging-painful-agonizing mile. Instead, here are some highlights...
The early part of the race was cool because we were high in the mountains and the sun wasn't up, yet. The mid part of the race was cool because we were still in the canyon and the cliffs formed huge shadows that keep a near perpetual pre-sunrise chill in the air. The last part of the race was HOT because we were out of the canyon, running in the full blaze of the summer sun in the middle of the city.
Oh, the scenery was beautiful! I live here and I know the canyon very well. Still, running through it gives so much more time to soak in the views than driving it. Rolling hills, red barns, white rail fences, shimmering water in the river and the reservoir, green pine forests, rugged cliffs, waterfalls, and wildflowers.
For a downhill course, there sure were plenty of uphills. I knew I couldn't run the entire course non-stop, so I decided to walk the uphills. That way I could use the momentum of the downhill running to try to improve on my training time. That seemed to work well. When an uphill section drew near, I picked a spot on the hill where I would give myself permission to slow to a walk. Then, as I neared the crest, I chose another spot there I had to start running again.
Once, while I was walking an uphill, another participant joined me. I couldn't tell her age. She might have been my age; she might have been younger. Her hair was bleached white and her skin was very dark. She looked too trim and fit to be with us slower runners, but at the same time, she looked like she had lived life hard and fast... if that makes any sense. We chatted for a while and she told me all about the person she was supposed to be running with in the race. He was her boyfriend and chose to run with her despite not being a runner himself. He used to be clean and sober, but had recently fallen off the bandwagon and was drinking and smoking weed again. He had fallen behind and she was worried about him. She was walking in the hopes that he would catch up to her.
Then she told me that he hits her, sometimes.
Holy $*#@!
I had listened to her tale about her boyfriend and held my tongue, despite thinking he was pathetic, but I couldn't remain quiet any longer. I told her emphatically that she needed to leave him! I advised her to turn him in to the authorities. I told her she deserved better and that NO ONE had the right to hit her! I asked her if she had family near by (she is living with her parents). We were well on the downhill side and my "run" marker had come and gone, but I kept walking and talking with her.
In the end, I had to leave her. I couldn't walk the whole race. I wished her well and continued on my way. I don't remember her name, and I will probably never see her again, but I hope she finds the courage to get him out of her life!
Other runners came and went on my radar. Only a few others stand out, for me.
One such runner was named John. He and I had been leap frogging for most of the lower canyon. We walked together for a little while at the base of the canyon. He was an older gentleman with a handlebar mustache. This was his 300th marathon.
300th!!!
He started running them in the 80's. He was so friendly. He complimented me on my "power walk" (I wouldn't let my walking speed drop below 4 1/2 mph) and advised me to cut from corner to corner of the road on turns to make sure I wasn't adding mileage to the race. I told him my hope to finish at around 5hr 15min and he said that while it'd be tough, he believed I could make it. He pulled away as we entered the city. I could see him turning to look back and check on me every once and a while. But he had some amazing reserves of speed in him that weren't in me, so I watched him go and kept on going at the best pace I could manage...
...because by then I was in pain.
Oh! The first half of the race was SO BEAUTIFUL! I really enjoyed the first 15 miles. In fact, it wasn't until around mile 18 that I started to hurt. Mile 21 is when it truly got tough. By then I was in new territory. I had never pushed myself that far, before. By mile 23, I was in agony. My knees hurt, but it was my feet that were causing my distress. They were on FIRE! Every step was piercing. It felt like I was ripping the soles off my feet. At one point, my mind was entirely filled with the pain in my feet until I finally had to tell myself, "yes, there is pain. It is not going away. Accept it, put it out of your mind, and keep going."
The last 3 miles felt like they lasted forever. My body wanted to quit, but my mind was locked and rock solid. I was gonna finish this thing. Only 3 measly miles stood between me and my goal. There were water stations at every mile marker for those last 3 miles, so I drank a Powerade, drank a water, and doused myself with a water each time and forced myself to keep moving forward.
I don't think I can put into words the feeling when I saw the finish line in the distance. Overwhelming emotions! Knowing it was almost over, if I could just hold out a little bit longer! I had sent Bill texts at 13.1 miles, 10 miles, 5, 3, 2, and 1 mile. I forced myself to run the last half mile non-stop. I wanted to finish strong.
Mom, Dad, and Paul (my brother-in-law) were waiting to cheer me at the 26 mile marker. Bill and Will were at the finish line. I found out later that my visiting teaching partner, Leanna, came down and watched me finish without telling me she was going to do so! She is so awesome!
Yes, I choked up as I crossed the line.
Bill and Will came to find me right away. Bill had made up an entire lunch cooler full of post race awesomeness! He made a bottle of chocolate milk mixed just the way I like it. He had a couple of frozen bottles of water that he used as a roller massage on my legs and to ice my knees. There was a protein shake and a couple of Cokes. He and Will ended up drinking the Cokes, though. I didn't want them. Will went and got my drop bag for me so I could strip off the shoes and socks and put my flip-flops on.
Mom, Dad, and Paul found me and we all sat on the City Hall steps as Bill massaged my legs. You are supposed to walk off the race, not sit down and, yes, I did walk around all afternoon, but I'll save that story for another post.
My official time was 5 hours, 19 minutes, 10 seconds. That is just crazy! Who would want to spend that much time running?! Me, apparently.
After saying good-bye to Mom, Dad, and Paul, we headed to the car. Bill had parked it on the second level of a parking structure, so Will and I waited in the shade while Bill brought it down. There was no way I wanted to walk up to it. While we waited, my campfire buddies came walking up! And... John was with them! They all recognized me and we high-fived (and John gave me a hug) as they congratulated me on completing my first marathon. One of them pointed out to me that there was a blister on the side of my foot. I hadn't even noticed it. The pain in the soles of my feet had completely masked it.
So, here we are... A day later. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) has set in with a vengeance. I feel like someone has beaten me with a baseball bat. Everything from my chest down just HURTS! I can barely stand. Besides the blister, I also have 4 toenails (two on each foot) that look like they are going to die and fall off.
But, I am so very happy! I conquered myself and completed this huge goal. Now I plan to enjoy my summer just doing whatever workout strikes my fancy. Running will return to its rightful place as only one of many things I like to do, instead of consuming all my workouts.
Thanks to everyone who has supported my in this crazy journey to marathon! It means a lot to me.
Will I ever do it again?
I think so!
Over the Limit
I am still training for the marathon. It is less than a month away.
Several weeks ago, I ran 16.5 miles and my knees REALLY did not like it! I ended up walking the majority of the last two miles and I was very frustrated. The following weekend, I decided to cut my long run down to 10 miles, just to give my knees a bit of a break. That was working out great, until I pulled something in my lower left leg about 1.6 miles from the end of the run. Gah. I limped along, calling each family member in turn, to see if anyone was close enough to home to come and pick me up. No one was even remotely close. So, I limped on home for 1.6 miles. I iced it all day, but it still took about a week before I was able to "run" again. Now I am back to running, but I seem to have lost all ambition. I should be running 20 miles by now (in my training schedule), but I don't seem to have the motivation to do more than 7 or 8 miles at a time. :~/
Ah well. I still plan to "run" the marathon in a few weeks. My time on it will probably be terrible, but at least I'll be able to check it off the bucket list and go back to the kinds of workouts I enjoy doing!
I do enjoy running... for about an hour or less. After that it just becomes WORK. I'm not a marathoner, after all. I need to stick to the 10K to Half Marathon distance.
I also enjoy riding my bike... when it isn't a race.
I can't wait to get back to swimming, too! I've spent all this spring focused almost exclusively on running, with only one cross training workout per week. I can't wait to just go back to swim/bike/run/kayak/weights... and doing them whenever I want!
But all of that isn't really what I wanted to talk about today.
Despite all my exercising, I haven't lost ANY weight.
I know it shouldn't matter. My heart is healthy. My body is healthy. That is what should matter.
But I want a flat tummy. I want the flab and fat gone. Bottom line.
So, I have decided that I simply have to gain control of some kind over my diet.
Did you know that I gave up soda last November? Okay, I admit, I drank one in Hawaii. But I discovered that it tasted terrible! Woah. I used to LOVE the taste of Dr. Pepper! Now it just tastes like bitter chemicals to me. HURRAY! I am actually really glad for that "cheat" soda, because before I drank it, I struggled with my willpower every time we ate out, because I was remembering that wonderful taste. Now, it is super easy to go for a non-soda beverage, because I know soda won't taste good.
I thought giving up soda would be the magic bullet for weight loss. People are always saying, "I gave up soda and dropped 20 lbs!" Yeah, not me.
So. It is time for a new challenge. I feel like I have won the soda fight, and it is time for a new battle.
I am going to track my sugars.
That's it. No calorie counting. No worrying about ratios of proteins and carbs. Just count those stinkin' sugars.
So far today I am up to 57 grams. That is just breakfast (oatmeal w/butter, 1 tsp. of sugar, and cinnamon & a glass of milk) and lunch (frozen burritos w/sour cream & salsa & a glass of milk).
How many sugar grams am I supposed to have in a day?
Well, sha-poopie.
I'm already at the limit at 3:00 in the afternoon. That's without any treats, too. Dinner will take me over.
This is gonna be a hard fight.
I can tell immediately that I'm gonna have to curb my milk addiction. Milk has 12 grams per cup. So, I'm gonna have to cut my portions in half, I think.
I'll let you know how it's going in a month or two.
Several weeks ago, I ran 16.5 miles and my knees REALLY did not like it! I ended up walking the majority of the last two miles and I was very frustrated. The following weekend, I decided to cut my long run down to 10 miles, just to give my knees a bit of a break. That was working out great, until I pulled something in my lower left leg about 1.6 miles from the end of the run. Gah. I limped along, calling each family member in turn, to see if anyone was close enough to home to come and pick me up. No one was even remotely close. So, I limped on home for 1.6 miles. I iced it all day, but it still took about a week before I was able to "run" again. Now I am back to running, but I seem to have lost all ambition. I should be running 20 miles by now (in my training schedule), but I don't seem to have the motivation to do more than 7 or 8 miles at a time. :~/
Ah well. I still plan to "run" the marathon in a few weeks. My time on it will probably be terrible, but at least I'll be able to check it off the bucket list and go back to the kinds of workouts I enjoy doing!
I do enjoy running... for about an hour or less. After that it just becomes WORK. I'm not a marathoner, after all. I need to stick to the 10K to Half Marathon distance.
I also enjoy riding my bike... when it isn't a race.
I can't wait to get back to swimming, too! I've spent all this spring focused almost exclusively on running, with only one cross training workout per week. I can't wait to just go back to swim/bike/run/kayak/weights... and doing them whenever I want!
But all of that isn't really what I wanted to talk about today.
Despite all my exercising, I haven't lost ANY weight.
I know it shouldn't matter. My heart is healthy. My body is healthy. That is what should matter.
But I want a flat tummy. I want the flab and fat gone. Bottom line.
So, I have decided that I simply have to gain control of some kind over my diet.
Did you know that I gave up soda last November? Okay, I admit, I drank one in Hawaii. But I discovered that it tasted terrible! Woah. I used to LOVE the taste of Dr. Pepper! Now it just tastes like bitter chemicals to me. HURRAY! I am actually really glad for that "cheat" soda, because before I drank it, I struggled with my willpower every time we ate out, because I was remembering that wonderful taste. Now, it is super easy to go for a non-soda beverage, because I know soda won't taste good.
I thought giving up soda would be the magic bullet for weight loss. People are always saying, "I gave up soda and dropped 20 lbs!" Yeah, not me.
So. It is time for a new challenge. I feel like I have won the soda fight, and it is time for a new battle.
I am going to track my sugars.
That's it. No calorie counting. No worrying about ratios of proteins and carbs. Just count those stinkin' sugars.
So far today I am up to 57 grams. That is just breakfast (oatmeal w/butter, 1 tsp. of sugar, and cinnamon & a glass of milk) and lunch (frozen burritos w/sour cream & salsa & a glass of milk).
How many sugar grams am I supposed to have in a day?
50-60 grams.
Well, sha-poopie.
I'm already at the limit at 3:00 in the afternoon. That's without any treats, too. Dinner will take me over.
This is gonna be a hard fight.
I can tell immediately that I'm gonna have to curb my milk addiction. Milk has 12 grams per cup. So, I'm gonna have to cut my portions in half, I think.
I'll let you know how it's going in a month or two.
Summer
There are two versions of me. For most of the year, I keep to a fairly strict schedule. I do my hair and makeup. I even dress well. You know, making an effort to look like a professional, grown up, well put together person. That version of me gets up to an alarm every morning, works hard all day, and falls into bed at night exhausted, but pleased with the many things that were accomplished during the day.
The other version of me only exists during the summer months. June, July, and most of August. For nearly 12 weeks each year, I transform into someone else.
In the summer, there are no alarm clocks. I will get up early if I feel like it, but most of the time, I sleep in. Before I go any farther, I feel I need to throw in a caveat... This is where I am in my life now. This has been a long time coming, however. For many years, my sleep patterns and schedules were dictated by the needs of my children. I know I have friends and family who automatically roll their eyes when I say I sleep in as late as I want to. You who are still in the young children phase are saying, "yeah, right! As if my children would LET me sleep in!"
I hear you. I have been there. Done that. And I am here now telling you that there is an end in sight! There will come a day when your children no longer jolt you awake at 6 a.m. (or earlier) by pouncing on you and asking, "what's for breakfast?" In fact, someday, your children will grumble if you dare to try and wake them before noon.
So. Back to summer!
Most summers I do have a loose resolution list. Things I hope to accomplish. One summer I stripped the paint and stain off several of the old doors in this house and re-stained, varnished, and hung them. (There are still more to do.) Another summer I sanded and painted the outside window trim and painted the exterior doors red. (Again, still more to do.) You get the picture. This year is no exception. However, this summer, my resolution list is all about me. Get in shape. Train for a triathlon. That's it... So, other than my workout(s) for the day, I have no other ambitions or goals.
Nope.
None. Nada. Zip.
I wear a lot of exercise clothes. And swim suits. And just lounge around clothes. I don't care if they match or even look attractive on me. I wear makeup about once a week, if that. More often than not, my hair is piled up on my head and clamped down with a great big claw clip, or yanked back in a pony tail. Half the time it is wet from the pool, the lake, or the shower. My summer time perfume is a combo of chlorine and sunscreen. My skin is darkening despite the 50 SPF I wear daily. My hair is bleaching out.
And I am very happy.
As I said, I have no definite schedules. I have the time to soak in all the sights, sounds, and smells of summer.
I love the sound of lawn mowers and sprinklers. The sound of a little league game at the nearby park. Children's laughter drifting through the neighborhood. The sound of a train whistle in the distance on a summer evening. I love to listen to the crickets at night.
I love the smell of fresh cut grass, chlorine from the pool, and fresh summer rain on hot pavement.
I love going to the lake and watching my son windsurf, or lounging at the pool with my daughter and catching up on all her news. I love sitting in my back yard and watching the dragonflies dance. I love falling into a trance as I watch the birch wood slowly burn to glowing embers in the fire pit. I love pondering a midnight blue sky full of stars while a gentle summer breeze caresses me.
I love that I can spend an entire afternoon buried in a book and not feel the least bit guilty about it.
No cares. No worries.
Or, at least, all cares and worries put on hold. Time seems to stand still for just a little bit and the days run together into a blaze of sunshine and glory. Just for a little while, I feel young again.
And that is a very good thing.
The other version of me only exists during the summer months. June, July, and most of August. For nearly 12 weeks each year, I transform into someone else.
In the summer, there are no alarm clocks. I will get up early if I feel like it, but most of the time, I sleep in. Before I go any farther, I feel I need to throw in a caveat... This is where I am in my life now. This has been a long time coming, however. For many years, my sleep patterns and schedules were dictated by the needs of my children. I know I have friends and family who automatically roll their eyes when I say I sleep in as late as I want to. You who are still in the young children phase are saying, "yeah, right! As if my children would LET me sleep in!"
I hear you. I have been there. Done that. And I am here now telling you that there is an end in sight! There will come a day when your children no longer jolt you awake at 6 a.m. (or earlier) by pouncing on you and asking, "what's for breakfast?" In fact, someday, your children will grumble if you dare to try and wake them before noon.
So. Back to summer!
Most summers I do have a loose resolution list. Things I hope to accomplish. One summer I stripped the paint and stain off several of the old doors in this house and re-stained, varnished, and hung them. (There are still more to do.) Another summer I sanded and painted the outside window trim and painted the exterior doors red. (Again, still more to do.) You get the picture. This year is no exception. However, this summer, my resolution list is all about me. Get in shape. Train for a triathlon. That's it... So, other than my workout(s) for the day, I have no other ambitions or goals.
Nope.
None. Nada. Zip.
I wear a lot of exercise clothes. And swim suits. And just lounge around clothes. I don't care if they match or even look attractive on me. I wear makeup about once a week, if that. More often than not, my hair is piled up on my head and clamped down with a great big claw clip, or yanked back in a pony tail. Half the time it is wet from the pool, the lake, or the shower. My summer time perfume is a combo of chlorine and sunscreen. My skin is darkening despite the 50 SPF I wear daily. My hair is bleaching out.
And I am very happy.
As I said, I have no definite schedules. I have the time to soak in all the sights, sounds, and smells of summer.
I love the sound of lawn mowers and sprinklers. The sound of a little league game at the nearby park. Children's laughter drifting through the neighborhood. The sound of a train whistle in the distance on a summer evening. I love to listen to the crickets at night.
I love the smell of fresh cut grass, chlorine from the pool, and fresh summer rain on hot pavement.
I love going to the lake and watching my son windsurf, or lounging at the pool with my daughter and catching up on all her news. I love sitting in my back yard and watching the dragonflies dance. I love falling into a trance as I watch the birch wood slowly burn to glowing embers in the fire pit. I love pondering a midnight blue sky full of stars while a gentle summer breeze caresses me.
I love that I can spend an entire afternoon buried in a book and not feel the least bit guilty about it.
No cares. No worries.
Or, at least, all cares and worries put on hold. Time seems to stand still for just a little bit and the days run together into a blaze of sunshine and glory. Just for a little while, I feel young again.
And that is a very good thing.
New Year's Resolutions
I am a big fan of them. I always have been.
Not because I have always rocked them. No, I am not that good at accomplishing all of them. There have even been years that I failed at all of them. Some years I have a bucket load of them, other years there is just one.
But I usually manage a few... and that always makes me feel AWESOME! So here is this year's batch... in no particular order.
This year seems to be a 'bucket load' type of year!
Not because I have always rocked them. No, I am not that good at accomplishing all of them. There have even been years that I failed at all of them. Some years I have a bucket load of them, other years there is just one.
But I usually manage a few... and that always makes me feel AWESOME! So here is this year's batch... in no particular order.
- Keep my training consistent and steadily build for the races I've signed up for.
- Move at least 2,012 miles for 2012! (swim/bike/run)
- Complete my first full marathon.
- Complete my first century bike ride.
- Complete my first long distance triathlon.
- Ski down the real slope at least once this season.
- Knit a blanket (or two) in double knit on the knitting board.
- Learn to single knit on a rake loom.
- Finish my first knit sweater by Christmas 2012.
- Complete two artworks.
- Stay on top of the weekly finances.
- Eat more vegetables.
This year seems to be a 'bucket load' type of year!
The first half of that list are all interconnected, and I am confident that they will all take place. After all, I have already plunked down the money for two of the three events. YES! I am not only signed up for the Utah Valley marathon, I have now also officially entered the Provo Tri!
AHHHH!
Can I tell you how terrified I feel?!? I agonized over that registration and found it very difficult to click on the 'submit' button.
The Provo Triathlon is an unofficial half Ironman distance event. Unofficial because it is not sponsored by the official Ironman brand. But the distances will feel just as real, I am sure!
1.2 mile swim + 52 mile bike + 13.1 mile run
I am hyperventilating just writing that.
I feel pretty good about each individual piece of the whole. I can do 1.2 miles of swimming. Piece of cake. I can ride a bike for 52 miles. Very doable. I know I can run 13.1 miles with the right prep work... after all, I did it twice last year!
But put them all together and what do you get?
The biggest goal I have ever set for myself.
I am pretty sure the 2,012 miles goal will take care of itself in all the training and races. Especially with all the biking miles I'll be putting in to get ready for the third event that I have yet to sign up for... the ULCER.
ULCER stands for Utah Lake Century Epic Ride. It is a 111 mile bike ride around the perimeter of the lake. That will be happening just a couple of days before my birthday. Happy Birthday to me! Bill is going to do it with me, and we aren't going to 'race', just do.
The knitting and artwork goals are fun, down-time ambitions. I enjoy doing them, it is just a matter of making time in my schedule for them.
And the finances and veggies?
I just know I should be better at them both. So, I'll work on them.
AHHH! It is a lot! A lot.
I am looking forward to meeting the new me at the other end of this list!
Happy New Year, everyone! Go make a list of your own and go for it!
Bucket List
We all have one. Things we want to do. Most of the stuff on it is far off, possibly never to be accomplished. Because, of course, a bucket list is a list of all the most amazing stuff we want to do BEFORE WE DIE. Most of us are comfortable pushing off the stuff on this list because we have mundane, everyday kinds of stuff to get done in the here and now, and there will always be time later because death is no where near.
But the fallacy there is the statement that death is no where near. We don't actually know when we are going to die. Maybe when we're 100. Maybe tomorrow.
So, how important to you is your bucket list and all the stuff on it?
My bucket list has some stuff that I hope to do, if I get a chance. Like traveling to Norway. But it also holds stuff that I really want to do/learn.
Like complete an Ironman triathlon. And knitting a sweater.
I am working on the Ironman thing. Every time I sign up for another race (whether it's a marathon, bike, or tri) I come another step closer to that goal. A full marathon is on my bucket list too, and I'll be doing that one this June!
But the knitting?
I can knit hats on a 'knifty knitter' loom. Whoopee.
I want one of these!!!
It is a knitting board. It would allow me to create sweater panels.
I don't do the whole knitting with needles thing. I have tried that and ended up with lumpy, irregular garbage. The knitting board would keep the knitting uniform. Then I could focus on learning patterns and designs for creating the sweater panels.
Why is it so important to me to learn to knit, you wonder?
My paternal grandmother knitted. She knitted Norwegian sweaters. I have a couple of the sweaters she made. They are very precious to me because they came from her hands.
Oh! I want that connection to her and my heritage.
She passed away when I was 1 year old and never had a chance to teach me.
Wouldn't it be great to see her again on the other side and have her be proud of me for carrying on that skill?
So, what's on your bucket list?
But the fallacy there is the statement that death is no where near. We don't actually know when we are going to die. Maybe when we're 100. Maybe tomorrow.
So, how important to you is your bucket list and all the stuff on it?
My bucket list has some stuff that I hope to do, if I get a chance. Like traveling to Norway. But it also holds stuff that I really want to do/learn.
Like complete an Ironman triathlon. And knitting a sweater.
I am working on the Ironman thing. Every time I sign up for another race (whether it's a marathon, bike, or tri) I come another step closer to that goal. A full marathon is on my bucket list too, and I'll be doing that one this June!
But the knitting?
I can knit hats on a 'knifty knitter' loom. Whoopee.
I want one of these!!!
It is a knitting board. It would allow me to create sweater panels.
I don't do the whole knitting with needles thing. I have tried that and ended up with lumpy, irregular garbage. The knitting board would keep the knitting uniform. Then I could focus on learning patterns and designs for creating the sweater panels.
Why is it so important to me to learn to knit, you wonder?
My paternal grandmother knitted. She knitted Norwegian sweaters. I have a couple of the sweaters she made. They are very precious to me because they came from her hands.
Oh! I want that connection to her and my heritage.
She passed away when I was 1 year old and never had a chance to teach me.
Wouldn't it be great to see her again on the other side and have her be proud of me for carrying on that skill?
So, what's on your bucket list?
Tribulation
This was the subject of today's Sunday School lesson. I thought it was rather appropriate to the day.
One of the basic, fundamental questions that most Christians wrestle with as we strive to come closer to God is, "Why does God let bad things happen to good people?"
Tribulation can be anything from struggling with a personal addiction to the agonizing events that happened 10 years ago today.
I don't pretend to have all the answers. I don't know the mind of God. But let me tell you what I believe.
First of all, this discussion requires just a little background in my theological beliefs.
I believe that I have an eternal soul. I existed before I came here, I will exist still after I die. This mortal existence is merely one part of my greater purpose in the universe.
I believe God created the Earth. I have no beef when it comes to evolution vs. creationism. I personally think they are both right. God's timeline is probably much grander than our own and his 'days' in the book of Genesis are probably not Earth days. So, sure. Dinosaurs roamed the earth, we probably did evolve from amoeba in the primordial swamp, and we probably share a common ancestor with the modern chimp. I firmly believe in the accuracy of carbon dating, I am a big fan of the Big Bang Theory, and science in general. To me, this does not cause a rift with Adam being the first human at all. I think God is infinite in his wisdom and that someday when we return to him, it will all make perfect sense.
I believe that I came here to Earth to learn and to hopefully grow more like God. More knowledgeable, more compassionate, more wise. In order to learn, I have to be allowed to make choices for myself. The ability to choose is fundamental to my beliefs in finding my purpose in life. If God is our Heavenly Father, then I can use the analogy of teaching my child through choice to help me understand how God deals with us. To develop an independent mind, we allow our children to make choices and learn from them. God does the same with us. With choice, however, comes consequence. Some consequences are good. Some are not.
I believe that if I have the right to make choices and face the consequences of those choices, then so does every other human being on the planet. Unfortunately, the consequences of choices are not always isolated to the person who made the choice. And that is where the dilemma facing Christians comes into play. How can a kind and merciful God allow the evil choices of other men to bring suffering to the innocent?
I believe in Jesus. I believe that he chose to suffer for the sins of all mankind. I believe he atoned for those sins. That means that he paid the eternal price, or consequence, for the sins of all who will accept that atonement in their lives. That doesn't mean that we will be free of the mortal consequences of sin here on earth, however. But we will be free from the eternal consequences of sin, namely, separation from God. So, in that sense, although we suffer for a time here on earth, God knows it will only be for a small moment in the grand scheme of things and if we have become disciples of Christ, we will be able to rise above mortal strife.
I also believe we will never be given trials greater than our ability to withstand them. Small comfort though that may be in the midst of pain and anguish.
I believe that the suffering we feel when facing tribulation, or trials, can bring us greater empathy for our fellow men. I have suffered the sudden and tragic death of a younger brother. In that sense, I have a greater compassion, or empathy, for others who are currently struggling with the grief over the sudden death of a loved one. The ability to 'see' through another's eyes... someone else's perspective... is a God like quality that we can develop here on Earth.
Now, if God were only concerned with our happiness, he would take away our ability to choose and would make choices for all mankind in order to prevent any unhappiness. But, where is the learning in that? Where is the growth? How would we become more compassionate and wise? As a parent, would you want to continue to make EVERY choice for your children all of their lives? Are you only concerned with their happiness? Or is there more to being a parent?
I believe that God is concerned with much more than our temporary happiness. It is our eternal soul that he is concerned with. So, yes, we will have to face the consequences of not only our own choices, but those of other people as well. Some will suffer. Others will die. But the soul lives on, and grows... hopefully into something beautiful.
So. The Sunday School lesson today focused on 2 Corinthians, Chapter 1. In it, the apostle Paul is writing about tribulation to the people of Corinth. In it he encourages them to comfort one another in their times of trial, as Christ comforts his people. We are to become the hand of God in other people's lives. We are to use the wisdom and empathy we have gained from our own trials to lift those around us who are suffering. In order to do that, we must know our neighbors. How can you comfort and support a neighbor who just lost a parent if you don't even know it has happened? We have to reach out to one another in friendship and Christian love.
The lesson ties in beautifully with a blog post I read recently. Here is a small blurb from it...
Here is a link to the whole blog post if you'd like to read all of it. If gives us all a lot to think about.
So, all in all, it was a good lesson. Sorry for the rambling sermon. It uplifted me and I hope did the same for you. This is why I go to church.
One of the basic, fundamental questions that most Christians wrestle with as we strive to come closer to God is, "Why does God let bad things happen to good people?"
Tribulation can be anything from struggling with a personal addiction to the agonizing events that happened 10 years ago today.
I don't pretend to have all the answers. I don't know the mind of God. But let me tell you what I believe.
First of all, this discussion requires just a little background in my theological beliefs.
I believe that I have an eternal soul. I existed before I came here, I will exist still after I die. This mortal existence is merely one part of my greater purpose in the universe.
I believe God created the Earth. I have no beef when it comes to evolution vs. creationism. I personally think they are both right. God's timeline is probably much grander than our own and his 'days' in the book of Genesis are probably not Earth days. So, sure. Dinosaurs roamed the earth, we probably did evolve from amoeba in the primordial swamp, and we probably share a common ancestor with the modern chimp. I firmly believe in the accuracy of carbon dating, I am a big fan of the Big Bang Theory, and science in general. To me, this does not cause a rift with Adam being the first human at all. I think God is infinite in his wisdom and that someday when we return to him, it will all make perfect sense.
I believe that I came here to Earth to learn and to hopefully grow more like God. More knowledgeable, more compassionate, more wise. In order to learn, I have to be allowed to make choices for myself. The ability to choose is fundamental to my beliefs in finding my purpose in life. If God is our Heavenly Father, then I can use the analogy of teaching my child through choice to help me understand how God deals with us. To develop an independent mind, we allow our children to make choices and learn from them. God does the same with us. With choice, however, comes consequence. Some consequences are good. Some are not.
I believe that if I have the right to make choices and face the consequences of those choices, then so does every other human being on the planet. Unfortunately, the consequences of choices are not always isolated to the person who made the choice. And that is where the dilemma facing Christians comes into play. How can a kind and merciful God allow the evil choices of other men to bring suffering to the innocent?
I believe in Jesus. I believe that he chose to suffer for the sins of all mankind. I believe he atoned for those sins. That means that he paid the eternal price, or consequence, for the sins of all who will accept that atonement in their lives. That doesn't mean that we will be free of the mortal consequences of sin here on earth, however. But we will be free from the eternal consequences of sin, namely, separation from God. So, in that sense, although we suffer for a time here on earth, God knows it will only be for a small moment in the grand scheme of things and if we have become disciples of Christ, we will be able to rise above mortal strife.
I also believe we will never be given trials greater than our ability to withstand them. Small comfort though that may be in the midst of pain and anguish.
I believe that the suffering we feel when facing tribulation, or trials, can bring us greater empathy for our fellow men. I have suffered the sudden and tragic death of a younger brother. In that sense, I have a greater compassion, or empathy, for others who are currently struggling with the grief over the sudden death of a loved one. The ability to 'see' through another's eyes... someone else's perspective... is a God like quality that we can develop here on Earth.
Now, if God were only concerned with our happiness, he would take away our ability to choose and would make choices for all mankind in order to prevent any unhappiness. But, where is the learning in that? Where is the growth? How would we become more compassionate and wise? As a parent, would you want to continue to make EVERY choice for your children all of their lives? Are you only concerned with their happiness? Or is there more to being a parent?
I believe that God is concerned with much more than our temporary happiness. It is our eternal soul that he is concerned with. So, yes, we will have to face the consequences of not only our own choices, but those of other people as well. Some will suffer. Others will die. But the soul lives on, and grows... hopefully into something beautiful.
So. The Sunday School lesson today focused on 2 Corinthians, Chapter 1. In it, the apostle Paul is writing about tribulation to the people of Corinth. In it he encourages them to comfort one another in their times of trial, as Christ comforts his people. We are to become the hand of God in other people's lives. We are to use the wisdom and empathy we have gained from our own trials to lift those around us who are suffering. In order to do that, we must know our neighbors. How can you comfort and support a neighbor who just lost a parent if you don't even know it has happened? We have to reach out to one another in friendship and Christian love.
The lesson ties in beautifully with a blog post I read recently. Here is a small blurb from it...
He answered his phone…I saw that he was just listening…I could hear that the person’s voice was getting louder and louder and louder………..my husband just listened. He turned his back to me a little so I wouldn’t hear. But I could hear it….It seemed to go on and on and on……..
These were the things I could hear on the other end of the phonecall….
“You are bringing down the value of my property with that ugly sign!”
“What are you doing?”
“That is the most obnoxious sign, do you have a permit to have that out there?”
“Are you starting a used car lot?”
“You have got to get all of that moved and out of here or I am calling the authorities”
I sat there, mortified, embarrassed, humiliated, mad, sad, devastated. I was certain that this would snap my husband back into his dark hellish place.
But, when the man was done ranting, my husband waited a second and then very calmly said something that I will never, ever forget…….
“Sir,” he said, “There was a time in this country, in this community…when if you drove past your neighbor’s house and saw every single thing they own was for sale in front of their house…and that their lawn had not been mowed for weeks….that you would stop and say….WHAT IS GOING ON, SOMETHING MUST BE TERRIBLY WRONG, WHAT CAN I DO TO HELP YOU?”
The man was silent…..and then my husband went on to tell him a few details about what was going on with our family….
The man waited a moment and then his tone changed…..he apologized….I mean, really apologized and then said…
“I am going to call all of my friends and see if any of them need any of this stuff….”
Here is a link to the whole blog post if you'd like to read all of it. If gives us all a lot to think about.
So, all in all, it was a good lesson. Sorry for the rambling sermon. It uplifted me and I hope did the same for you. This is why I go to church.
Summer Goals, Revisited
Tomorrow I go back to work. Summer is over for me. That means it is time to look at the goals I set for myself and evaluate how I did on them...
(DONE!) send Will to Lacrosse camp, June 1-4
(DONE!) take Helena to ballet rehearsals, June 5 &6
(DONE!) clean house and set up guest room for Michelle (Matt's girlfriend), June 5-7
(DONE!) take Helena to ballet intensive and rehearsals June 8-12
(DONE!) help Helena pack for and send her to Europe, June 13-26
(DONE!) help Will pack and send him to Washington, June 15-22
(DONE!) while kids are gone, take down their doors, strip them and re-stain them
(DONE!) take Will to Band Camp, June 23-26
(DONE!) help Helena pack and send her to Girl's Camp, June 27ish
(1/2 WAY DONE) sign Helena up for Driver's Ed and take her
(DONE!) send Will to Scout Camp July 20th-25th
(DONE!) trade in Will's trumpet for a Euphonium
(DONE!) get furniture for the family room
(DONE!) get dining room table and chairs
(HAVEN'T FOUND ANY I LIKE, YET) find a hutch and sideboard
(1/4 WAY DONE) strip and stain remaining doors downstairs
(DONE!) set up study schedule for kids in July/early August to get ready for school
(NOPE) EXERCISE!!! 30-45 min. cardio each day
(NOPE) EXERCISE!!! Sit-ups and push ups every morning (increase reps over time)
(NOPE) EXERCISE!!! Swim laps at least twice a week
(DONE!) cut down portion sizes on luxury foods
(SO-SO) eat more protein, fruits, and veggies
(DONE!) read 4 books off my book list
(SOME) yard landscaping done (okay, this is really Bill, not me, but I will help where ever I can)
LOOK AT THAT!!! It makes me feel really good about myself to see how many of my goals I accomplished completely! I let myself down a bit in the exercise department, but I did go to the gym quite often, even if it wasn't as gung ho as I had planned at the outset.
I know some people don't like to set goals to paper (or computer screen in this case), but I find it very helpful to see what I have done! It really boosts my self esteem.
My Summer Goals
Okay, it is time!
Time to make a Summer Resolution List.
I make one every year and post it in the kitchen. There is no particular order to some of the things on the list, but some of them are time specific. Also, some of them are easy to accomplish, because they have a momentum of their own and will happen without much effort on my part. Other things are truly a struggle for me. I put them all on the list, however, because it gives me a huge sense of accomplishment to see all of the things that happened during my 'off' time.
So, here goes....
Time to make a Summer Resolution List.
I make one every year and post it in the kitchen. There is no particular order to some of the things on the list, but some of them are time specific. Also, some of them are easy to accomplish, because they have a momentum of their own and will happen without much effort on my part. Other things are truly a struggle for me. I put them all on the list, however, because it gives me a huge sense of accomplishment to see all of the things that happened during my 'off' time.
So, here goes....
- (DONE!) send Will to Lacrosse camp, June 1-4
- (DONE!) take Helena to ballet rehearsals, June 5 &6
- (DONE!) clean house and set up guest room for Michelle (Matt's girlfriend), June 5-7
- take Helena to ballet intensive and rehearsals June 8-12
- (ALMOST DONE!) help Helena pack for and send her to Europe, June 13-26
- help Will pack and send him to Washington, June 15-22
- while kids are gone, take down their doors, strip them and re-stain them
- take Will to Band Camp, June 23-26
- help Helena pack and send her to Girl's Camp, June 27ish
- sign Helena up for Driver's Ed and take her
- send Will to Scout Camp July 20th-25th
- (DONE!) trade in Will's trumpet for a Euphonium
- (DONE!) get furniture for the family room
- (DONE!) get dining room table and chairs
- find a hutch and sideboard
- strip and stain remaining doors downstairs
- set up study schedule for kids in July/early August to get ready for school
- EXERCISE!!! 30-45 min. cardio each day
- EXERCISE!!! Sit-ups and push ups every morning (increase reps over time)
- EXERCISE!!! Swim laps at least twice a week
- cut down portion sizes on luxury foods
- eat more protein, fruits, and veggies
- read 4 books off my book list
- yard landscaping done (okay, this is really Bill, not me, but I will help where ever I can)
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