The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man's determination".

Vineman Full Iron Distance race is tomorrow… and it sucks that I’m gonna miss it. On the other hand, though, it’s such a strong motivator and encourager to do more, to do different things and to continue challenging myself wherever and whenever I can.

This new stage in life is about challenges: professional challenges in a new state with new people and new discoveries waiting for me. The worst that I can do is to hide from these challenges and not face them head on. 

You can quit, and they won't care, but you will always know!

I have used these words from Eric Robinson’s blog before as a reminder that life is too short not to live it to its fullest and to enjoy every moment as if it was your last… They still resonate with me and they still call me to new, different things.

Live. And Live Well.

BREATHE. Breathe in and Breathe deeply. Be PRESENT. Do not be past. Do not be future. Be now.

On a crystal clear, breezy 70 degree day, roll down the windows and FEEL the wind against your skin. Feel the warmth of the sun.

If you run, then allow those first few breaths on a cool Autumn day to FREEZE your lungs and do not just be alarmed, be ALIVE.

Get knee-deep in a novel and LOSE track of time.

If you bike, pedal HARD… and if you crash then crash well.

Feel the SATISFACTION of a job well done—a paper well-written, a project thoroughly completed, a play well-performed.

If you must wipe the snot from your 3-year old’s nose, don’t be disgusted if the Kleenex didn’t catch it all… because soon he’ll be wiping his own.

If you’ve recently experienced loss, then GRIEVE. And Grieve well.

At the table with friends and family, LAUGH. If you’re eating and laughing at the same time, then might as well laugh until you puke. And if you eat, then SMELL. The aromas are not impediments to your day. Steak on the grill, coffee beans freshly ground, cookies in the oven. And TASTE. Taste every ounce of flavor. Taste every ounce of friendship. Taste every ounce of Life. Because-it-is-most-definitely-a-Gift.

I am learning to appreciate the things I am obtaining as a result of accepting these challenges. I am slowly learning (again) that good things happen to those who are patient and that sometimes the rewards are even better than the perceived rewards of staying where you are.

Feel The Silence
Goo Goo Dolls

You lie awake at night
With blue eyes that never cry
All you remember now
Is what you feel

The truth remains
In midnight conversations
I asked for this moment
But you turned away

Sad like a lonely child
Broken the day you're born
I held the light to you
But I was so vain

And you remain
A promise unfulfilled
I ask you for more
But you push me away

And if we feel the silence
Holding this all inside us
Everything means more now than
Words could explain
And if we feel the silence
*Leaving this all behind us*
Looking for something more to say

I don't know where I'm going
Only know where I been
But you move through my soul like a hurricane wind
We've been so lost for so long
I don't know how to get back again

And we're drowning in the water
That flows under this bridge
When you're fighting the current
You forget how to live
And I wanted to reach you but I don't know where to begin

And you remain
A promise unfulfilled until today

And if we feel the silence
Holding this all inside us
Everything means more now than
Words could explain
And if we feel the silence
Leaving this all behind us
When it's gone what will you say

How do we hold on
How do we hold on
How do we hold on
How do we hold on
How do we hold on

You lie awake at night
With blue eyes that never cry