Appreciate Each Day

This morning I read a post by Randy Elrod. I love Randy’s way of doing life … train religiously and party ferociously. In 1987, he set a goal to complete a marathon every year. Tomorrow he runs his 20th marathon. Run on Randy!

He ends his post (you should read it) with two questions … Have you ran a marathon? Or have you ever considered it?

It made me think back to my limited marathon experience. I did one in 1996 about three years after I began running. Then I dreamt, thought and talked about doing another one, but I never set a goal to actually do one … so I never did another one.

Then the accident happened and now I don’t know if my body could handle it. I’m thankful to be running even one step now and I will continue to try to strengthen my legs. Right now I’m training to do a half on April 9th … so time will tell, if I’ll be able tackle a full-marathon again.

Reading Randy’s post reminded me of something I wrote in 2006 (way back when no one read my blog) I decided to repost it.

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Appreciate each day! (first posted June, 2006)

Today I was driving on a road that I used to run on a lot. The road runs along the mountain and overlooks a valley filled with farms, complete with a creek at the bottom. It is a beautiful stretch to drive or run … with the trees on one side and the patchwork of fields on the the other side.

I thought of the many morning runs I did on that stretch of road pre-accident … sometimes with snow covering the fields and mist rising from the water, other times the spring flowers were just coming into bloom and still other days the corn was being harvested and orange pumpkins dotted the hills.

One memory that stands out from all the others is one particular morning. It was spring, slightly cool … the perfect temp for a run. The trees were full of young leaves and the air smelled of spring onions, dirt and grass. It was one of those runs, when I felt great … as if I could have run for hours. I had just finished a triumph burst down a short hill and was making my way uphill again.
photo © 2008 Cam Bamber | more info (via: Wylio)

I was marveling in the fact that I was a runner and loving it. Years earlier, I didn’t even like to go for walks, but a series of events changed that and here I was … on a challenging run.

Part way up the hill, the morning became even more glorious as I heard tunes from a harmonica up ahead. It was a soft, sweet melody that thrilled me and gave me the energy needed to make the final push to reach the top of the hill. There on a low, stone wall sat a teen passing the time waiting for the school bus with his harmonica. We only acknowledged each other with a nod (I was out of breath and he was playing)

The memory of that scene and the fact that our timing was never the same before or after that morning … makes the memory of that morning priceless.

Now as I passed the stone wall, I cried and reminded myself to cherish each day and to make the most of every part of my being that I have, while I have it. I can’t go on a run (in June ’06, I didn’t know if I would ever get back to running again) but I can do stretches and exercises so that when my ankle is healed (I recently had one of my many post-accident surgeries) I can go on walks, maybe ride a bike and use my kayak.

Also, I have a curious and healthy brain/mind … am I making the most of it? Relationships is another area that can change … am I cherishing my loved ones each day?

So, appreciate what you have when you have it … we never know what might change today.

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And today, 4+ years since I wrote this, I repeat that thought … Appreciate what you have today!

Any areas of your life that you need to appreciate more, be more aware of and/or maybe set some goals?