Nothing Else Matters...

                In a few weeks I’ll reach a milestone that in today’s fast food society is reached less and less.  On August 21^st my wife and I will celebrate 20 YEARS of marriage!!!!!  Holy cow.  There are several thoughts that pop into my mind.  First, there is no way I’m that old! Second, there is no way my wife is that old!!!    The time has flown by.  It’s had its ups and downs and everything in between.  We’ve cried, we’ve hurt but most of all we’ve laughed and we’ve grown together.

                Nearly twenty years ago I’d just barely graduated.  I was a skinny geek who had no idea what he wanted or where he wanted to go.  I met a fine young woman who had come to visit with another friend.  I was hobbled by a soccer injury.  She gave me the total and complete cold shoulder and I was hooked!!  The rest is history, a year and a half later we got married and we’ve been making happy memories ever since.  In 1993 Monday night football was still on network TV.  Chipper Jones was a rookie on the Braves, Hoffman was a rookie on the Marlins, Raul Mondesi a rookie on the Dodgers, and Brad Ausmus was a rookie catcher for the Padres .  Toronto beat the Phillies in the World Series, Dallas won the super bowl, and Chicago won the NBA championships.  (So I’m a little sports centric…I can guarantee she just smiled at the Ausmus reference!)  There was really no internet and cell phones were still brick sized.  I drove a really sweet Mercury Cougar (which died and led to an even cooler Yamaha Scooter) and life was just getting started. 

Too often we get caught in this negative loop in life.  We see the bad, the poor, the ugly but seldom do we stop and see the good.  But you know what as I lean back and gaze back over the landscape our 20 years has created I’m pretty happy.  I see mostly good times, a life built and a family created.   We’ve done a pretty darn good job.  We’ve learned to communicate, to express how we feel to each other and how to sacrifice for each other.  We’ve grown up together.  Most of all though, after 20 years we are still very much in love with each other.

                I have had successes in life and I have had failures.  I’ve been up and I’ve been down.  I’ve had far too many jobs and even more hobbies I’ve attempted to pursue.  In the end my wife has always held me up and been my rock.  A lot of people don’t see that part of our relationship but I’m here to tell you that without Kelly I would not be the happy, fairly balanced family man I am today.  She has, over the years, supported all the cooky little things I’ve done, let me vent when I needed to, put up with all of my undiagnosed personality defects and in the end what more can a man ask for from his wife?  She’ll watch baseball, football, and even tolerates a bit of the Tour de France as well as a soccer game or two.  She’s the perfect wife. 

                Nothing I do is ever as good as it is when my wife is with me.  As much as I love riding my bike, if I couldn’t share my adventures with her (even though she’s bored to tears as I describe my latest ‘cool’ ride stats)the rides just wouldn’t be as cool afterwards.  Without her I’d never be able to see a doctor (I hate filling out those darn forms).  Without her I’d have no faith in me, I’d doubt myself at every turn but her support and sometimes stern reminder to shut-up keeps me going.  Due to my job we don’t get a lot of alone time or little dates except for a quick hour lunch break on Tuesdays.  There are no kids and often times we go to the same restaurant but I don’t care what food I’m eating because I’m really just happy that for a few minutes we get to hang out.

                Kelly you are my rock.  You are my inspiration.  You’re my BFF and life would just not be as fun if you weren’t in it.  So thank you dear for these years.  Thank you for your support, your love and your devotion.  Thank you for the countless sacrifices you’ve made for me and for our family.  Thank you for always being there with a shoulder to cry on, a stern word to keep me in line, and kind words to keep me motivated.   Thank you for an awesome 20 years.  I love you. 

10 Step to a Life Fulfilled...

                It is easy to get caught up in this thing called life and end up missing out on all the little things.  We can get so lost in the ‘bigger picture’ that we’ll lose site of the little things that make this life fun and exciting.  Keeping our families going requires us to keep the bigger picture in mind but does it at the same time keep us from seeing the tiny moments each moment of the day?  We strive so hard to get to that next level at work that we forget to sit back and enjoy what we have right at that moment. 

                It can be said that who we were yesterday is no longer the person we are today.  The person we were an hour ago is not who we are right now.  We haven’t changed physically but as each moment passes we learn things, make decisions, take a right instead of a left and we change.  The person we were is dead.  Gone.  Dust.  We are left with the person we are right this moment…and then he/she is gone in the blink of an eye.  We cannot go back and change what that dead Us did, we can only deal with the consequences of the actions that person took.  This means that we must live in the here and the now and make correct decisions regarding our actions and our thoughts every single moment of the day.  Goals and tomorrow are not unimportant but they will take care of themselves as we get to them.  Long range goals are not bad as a guide but as I’ve said before we get too caught up in them and lose what we should be experiencing and enjoying right now.  Anything else is a waste of time.

                How do we get there?  There probably isn’t any one right answer.  Each of us are different and each of us see the world differently but I think there are a few ideas that will aid all of us in seizing the moment and living life to its fullest on a more regular basis.  The below ten steps are ten steps that I try to follow as often as I can.  They’ve worked more often than not for me, try a few out and see if they’ll work for you.

1.)    Find something you love or think you would love to do, learn about it and then do it, NOW.

2.)    Be better today than you were yesterday.

3.)    Decide how your life should be, the type of person you want to be and then BE IT.  Make no compromises when it comes to who you think you should be.

4.)    Recognize the difference between a smart-hustle and a stupid-hustle.

5.)    At least one time a week, leave the multi-tasking to corporate types, and be single minded in your pursuit for an hour.  Embrace the tunnel vision.

6.)    Do what you love and then tell the world about it.

7.)    Love you some you.

8.)    Turn off all of your electronics for an hour once a week. 

9.)    Spend at least five minutes a day meditating.

10.) Remember that expectations are your worst enemy.  Just roll with it.  If something doesn’t work out, it’s okay, enjoy what did work out.

Stop to see the flowers

Today’s world flies by at nearly the speed of light.  One year turns into two and then three and before you know it a decade has passed you by and that thing or that person you wanted to do/be is gone and the time for it is over.  Speed is an awesome thing.  The sensation of the wind in your face, the rush of adrenaline is amazing but sometimes slowing down and enjoying the world as it goes by you is just as awesome.  I’ve ridden some absolutely awesome trails on my mountain bike but it always amazes me that when I hike these trails or run them the things I’ve missed; a flower, a log, an animal watching me.  The list above can be you taking a timeout and hiking a trail you usually speed down on two wheels.  Take that time out.  Enjoy those little quick moments in life and in turn we will experience a better quality of life for the rest of our lives.