Living in the present moment

Reading for me has become a favorite past time.  I love when I find that book that inspires me. You know, the one that you want to underline, bookmark your favorite page, and write down those "aaahaa" moments.  The one that just clicks and you can not only enjoy that person's perspective but you can relate and explore ideas of how that could wrap around your own world.  This weekend, I had the wonderful opportunity to spend time with my brother and his family at their beautiful cottage in Wisconsin.  It was here that I found peace, serenity and the time to be inspired by "Chasing Daylight" by Eugene O' Kelly.  Briefly, Eugene  describes how his forthcoming death transforms his life.  He is a 53 yr.old executive who is diagnosed with terminal brain cancer and is given 3 months to live.  The key, is "3 months to live" not "3 months  to die".

I was incredibly moved by Eugene's ability to see and live his last months as a gift to him.   He states, "No more living in the future or the past for matter....It is exhausting to live in a world that never exists.  Also kind of silly, since we happen to be blessed with such a fascinati

ng one right here, right now."  He continu

es to say, "every morning upon waking, I tried my hardest to be in the present moment.  Just to appreciate what was around me that very second." 

As I laid on the dock this weekend, watched my kids play and reflected on Eugene's words,  I became mindfully aware of ALL the small moments that were going on.  It was amazing.  I would like to share just a sampling of the moments that I became fully aware of this weekend by living in the present moment.........

- a 2 hour car ride with Trev and Lexi which allowed time for talk, singing and laughing

-an opportunity to see my kids really excited about spending time with family (cousins)

-a shared run with my brother around the lake, giving us a chance to reconnect.

-seeing  deer and fox while out running (kathy saw a bear on the drive up, yikes!)

-a peaceful sunrise morning with coffe

e and a book

-a campfire complete with ghost stories and smores

-hours and hours of fun on the water, most of which included waves

-making the effort to really play and "be" with my kids

-taking photos of the kids tubing behind the boat and seeing their excitement and

 expressions up close

-diving into the refreshing waters without a wetsuit and knowing I can handle this (ok, it took me a couple times and only after my kids were in the water for a quite a while......did i really sw

am in the water.......it was colder than any lake I have been in, really).

-making dinner with my sister-in-law Kathy and just talking

-listening to the kids laughter and knowing life is good

OK......so I am getting it.  In the present 

moment........and really enjoying what life has to offer

.

This brings me to race morning.  I had signed up for Manitou  a while ago and have done this race several years and LOVE it.  But this particular weekend, I debated back and forth about this race.........do I leave all this at 4:30am to go race, to drive an hour plus (which

 is for me a wonderful moment to drive by myself with my music really loud) and then drive back to the cabin to catch up where the day has left.  Will my kids understand that need or want that I have to go race??

Yes......because in order for me to be the best mom I can 

be, I need to be the best all around person I can be.  Meaning, I need to do the things that make me happy, for me.  And triathlons just make me happy.  Within the triathlon community, there  is another full list of enjoyable moments.  Today's race was all about having fun and being in the moment.   I enjoyed every moment of the day(some more than others).  Here is a sampling of those moments..... 

-having your stomach do butterflies in anticipation as you look onto the choppy waters of the swim course(a slight hope that lightening may strike and turn this race into a duathlon!)

-hearing Jenny on the microphone as she keeps telling everyone to watch out for you on the race course

-being ok with everyone knowing that you are '42' years old as it is engraved in your calf (for the next couple days- thank  you Jeremy for the dumdum suckers)

-smiling at people that you haven't seen since last tri season

-standing in a circle of friends, taking the time to pray to God before race start (thank you FCA)

-people cheering for you as you do your best thru transitions and on the course

-warm up and cool down runs with dear friends 

-pushing your mind and body to its limit

-knowing that in this present moment, I did the best I could and I am happy.

 Eugene states, "commitment is best measured not by the time one is willing to give up but, more accurately, by the energy one wants to put in, by how present one is".    We only have partial on no control of our surroundings or our competitors.  

What we can control is ourselves, our energy,  how we use it and how we use it  in response to outside influences.  And this weekend was all about being  mindful and conscious, committed to what we love to do and the people we love to do it with........what makes us happy.

Again, I am blessed and I thank God everyday.