Reflection

 December 11, 2012-December 11, 2020..........8 years and it seems like a lifetime ago. 

When I went to sleep last night I said to Lori that I couldn’t believe it had been 8 years since my first surgery.  I remember being in the hospital watching the news and seeing the stories about Superstorm Sandy and the benefit concert that was taking place or the horrific news out of Connecticut about the senseless shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.  Eight years later and it’s a pandemic the world hasn’t seen in a century, it’s a child in the White House who can’t accept defeat, but one of the things i’ve learned over the years is to not to watch the news because it’s negativity that I don’t need in my life.

While the world has changed and stayed the same in a lot of ways, my life has certainly changed and only for the better.

My surgery awoke a new passion and drive that had long dissipated, that drive to challenge myself and become a better man, a better husband and a better father.  Trust me when I tell you that I never expected the vehicle for that passion to be endurance events, yet here we are.  

As I wake up each day to tackle whatever is on my training calendar I view it as a privilege not a chore.  I GET to do this every day not I HAVE to do this.  I’ve always believed that the months of training in different weather conditions, waking up early when I may not want to, time away from Lori and Jordan are part of the journey and the race at the end is the reward for months of hard work.  

As I sit and write this though I can’t help but think about my WHY.  I know that when I am training it keeps me balanced and serves as an outlet, a release for me of sorts.  However, I couldn’t and wouldn’t do this without Lori and Jordan’s support and belief in me.  I know that in taking on these challenges Jordan gets to see that with hard work, perseverance and determination you can accomplish anything.  I want him to know that things might sometimes be hard, but we earn the things we want in life they are not given to us.  Then there is Lori, she is really the unsung hero of all of this.  I know I don’t say it nearly enough, but truth be told she is a saint for putting up with me and my training.  She knows it is important to me, but she makes sacrifices that allow me to do this.  While I might be the one putting in the miles she is the one who takes care of everything else which is a bigger job in a lot of ways.  They say behind every great man is a great woman and that couldn’t be more true.  She has supported this craziness from the beginning and she has done it with a smile on her face and for that I am eternally grateful.  I could not and would not do this without both Lori and Jordan’s continued support and patience.  They are my why!

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