Anna the Winner

To Anna, who was on "The Price is Right" today, thank you.  Thank you for exuding such excitement.  You kept me on that elliptical.  I was ready to quit early.  But I just had to see if you would win.  And you did!  You guessed so well you even won both showcases, including a trip to Utah.  Talk about a bonus!

Thanks for the extra little umph I needed today!

To my Fellow Biker

Another beautiful morning on the Murdock Canal trail.  Heaven bless anyone and everyone who had anything to do with the construction of that lovely piece of road.  And a profound thank you to all of you who live along there, who now have bikers, walkers, runners, and even horses traipsing through your back yards.  And to you unfortunate people who live in that one corner house where I had to stop, bend over and unweave my shoelace which had become caught up in my bike chain--I'm sorry you had to see that.

As I looked into the faces of those along the trail, I saw a fellow biker who looked in absolute pain.  She did not appear happy at all to be there.  I was trying to understand it; as she was even wearing a BYU sweatshirt.  Perhaps she was thinking about the BYU-Utah game a few days ago.

Then, eight miles later, as I had made my loop and was on my way back, I passed her again.  This time she had a smile a mile wide on her face.  Was she anticipating the chocolate doughnut waiting for her back home?  Maybe excited about a wonderful day at work?   Hmmm.  I will never know.  But something turned her frown upside down this morning.  Just as I have, I wonder if she simply started seeing the beauty of the day, and didn't feel her own pain so much.  Who knows.

To you, fellow biker, I'm so glad you were able to feel joy on that bike ride.  It's going to be a beautiful day.

Elder Joseph W. Sitati

Elder Joseph Sitati visited our church yesterday.  He has actually been here for a few days, visiting with people in our LDS stake, as he has reorganized our stake presidency.  The process is quite amazing and divine.  Mark and I had a chance to visit with him and hear his inspired counsel of how to live our lives better, and to draw closer to God.  I felt as if I were in the presence of a true messenger from heaven.  His quiet, loving, yet leading demeanor has already had a powerful influence in our family these past few days.  I want to live better.  I want to keep my house more in order.  I am going to take a song or two off my iPod.  I want to treat others with more kindness and respect.  I want to spend more time reading and soaking up the scriptures.  I want to become closer to Heavenly Father.  Thank you, Elder Sitati, for your example, your words, the tender way I watched you treat your sweet wife, and for the teachings you left with us this weekend.

My Sweet Mark

5:00 this morning, Mark gently woke me and asked if I wanted to go on a walk with him.  Usually I love the mornings.  But I didn't sleep well last night, and the only thing I wanted to do was turn over and pull the covers over my head.  I told him to go ahead.  Besides, Sophie, our yellow lab, was running up and down the hall, chomping at the bit, at the prospect of going with Mark on a walk.  Just before they went out the front door, I realized how much I wanted to go, too.  I called out for them to wait for me, and I hurried and got ready while Mark took Sophie around the block.

Although my knee still hurts a bit, I tried to shake it off before it totally lured me back to bed.  The thought of being out, early in the morning, spending some time with Mark, kept me going.

We started around the track just down the street from our house.  Mark looked up at the sky and commented on the beauty.  What beauty?  What did he mean?  It was pitch dark!  And didn't he know how much my knee hurt?  And by the way, now my foot, too?  I need some new shoes.  But I looked around.  I looked up.  Then I noticed it, too.  There were bright, twinkly stars.  The moon was full.  It wasn't so dark after all.  It was a beautiful autumn morning!  Mark then went on to tell me about a wonderful speaker he heard last night at a conference.  He shared this man's ideals and success in his personal, family, and business life.  During the last half of our walk, we talked about those ideas, and it was easy to see how positive Mark is.  He seeks for the good in everything.  And he loves and appreciates life. He loves and appreciates his Father in Heaven.  And he loves and appreciates me!  He tells me often.  I love being married to Mark.  He is my rock.  He finds the beauty in the storm.

And, just as it has seemed to do on other days, my aches and pains began to subside as I focused more on him, and my own eternal gratitude for him in my life.  What a delightful blessing and inspiration he is.

Have a wonderful day, my sweet Mark.  I love you!!

Pain and Refocus

An amazing realization occurred yesterday morning as I was on that beautiful bike ride along the Murdock Canal.  My knees were killing me, and I could think of little else throughout most of the ride.  Then I saw the young woman I wrote about in yesterday's entry, running and pushing the jogging stroller.  I realized when I got home that as I was thinking about how inspiring she and many others out there on the trail were, I hadn't even noticed my pain for the remainder of the ride.  It was incredible how that worked!

I remember well my first marathon, just over ten years ago.  The night before the big 26.2 Deseret News Marathon, I wrote down 26.2 (!) names of those who helped me get there.  Family, friends, even teachers and mentors.  I dedicated a mile to each of them.  Each time I reached a mile marker, I pulled out my list and focused on that person for the next mile.  Mark was by my side the entire time, even though he could have finished it much faster than I could, and we talked about that person while we ran (or walked!).  Having someone else to focus on was extremely helpful when the miles grew painful and  when I wondered why in the world I had set out to do this.  What an exhilarating experience to realize the many who had and continue to be such an inspiration.

So.  Now I'm a little older and wanting to get back into the swing of things.  Things like joints and bones and muscles are a little more creaky and wobbly and painful.  They don't do what I'd like them to do as fast as I'd like.  I'm seeking for inspiration.  I'm certain, as happened yesterday, that looking around and focusing on someone else will help me to not be so concerned with my own aches and pains.

Today's 'dedication' goes to the guy I saw in the gym this morning.  I have seen him there once or twice, he looks to be about 40 or 50 years old, but today I noticed him hunched over, walking from one weight machine to the next.  He looked like he was in even more pain than I was yesterday.  He was limping a bit, and I have no idea what his story is.  But he was there.  He didn't not show up to work out.  It was inspiring to see that perhaps he would have rather stayed home in bed this morning, but instead, he was pushing forward.

To you, as you finish your day, I hope the pain lessens.  I hope you have loved ones who will give you support and care.  And I hope you will show up again to push through another day!

Dedication

Today I went on a bike ride along the newly constructed Murdock Canal.  The morning was beautiful and invigorating.  But my knees were killing me.  What made me think I could run around the track more than I should have, a few nights ago?  That's another story, but today I focus on the wonderful experience I had this morning.  There is something to being outdoors that rejuvenates the spirit, isn't there?  However, all I could think of during the first seven miles of my 11 mile trek was how bad my left knee hurt.  Grateful it wasn't my right one, which is the one that usually hurts.  Anyway, as I rounded a corner, I noticed a young woman running towards me pushing a jogging stroller.  The sun hit her blond hair just so, and she looked like an angel. And she had a pony tail.  It was waving back and forth behind her, and then, as I passed her, I noticed the intensity on her face.  The focus.  The determination.  I thought of her for the rest of my ride.  I admire her dedication.  Not just to her health, but to that sweet child she was pushing.  It was probably her own child, but it could have been a niece, a neighbor, perhaps even a little sister.

Whatever else happens in her day today, it will be much easier to handle because of her run.

To you, whomever you are, thank you for inspiring me this morning!

GET YOUR 2013 RUNNING WITH ANGELS 5K RESULTS HERE!

Here is a link to the 2013 Running with Angels results:
http://www.runsum.com/results/results.php?raceid=132

Here are some pictures from 2012.  I will post photos of 2013 here in a few days!