Happy Post Valentine Day. I didn’t get a rose, or chocolates, buuuuut I did get to watch this absolutely inspiring Ted Talk by Jordan Howlett and I’m passing along the gift to you.
Before this video, I thought of Jordan as the “Come Here” guy. He stands in front of a bathroom mirror, iPhone covering one eye, as he beckons you to come closer, and listen to his latest shenanigans with the outside world.
I first heard of Jordan through my sister. At one am, when the rest of the sane world was sleeping, she would rapid fire his YouTube shorts to me. Then I started looking for him. He was easy, simple, good company. So to learn that behind the rich eyebrows of the “Come here” guy is a well of depth and fortitude has been both humbling and inspiring.
You’re tired. You want to sleep for a year. You don’t even know what you’re doing anymore. Do it anyway.
Confession time. I haven’t written this week. Part of it was unavoidable and part of it was me avoiding the table. I kept pulling up chores like they were my battle shield against the desk.
It got me feeling nostalgic for when my niblings lived with us. There is nothing like taking care of little kids to highlight how much time you had and how much time you wasted before their arrival. When you are responsible for feeding, bathing, and entertaining children, every spare minute counts.
On most days, I was exhausted before the day began. But when it came time for dinner, I did it anyway. When it was time to shower, I did it anyway. When it was time to wake up, walk to school, supervise homework…. we did it anyway.
Because tired or not, kids have to be taken care of.
“So, ehm, where exactly does nostalgia come in?”
In that space, I was forced to learn something that I think most experienced runner’s know. The distance you are capable of running is significantly longer than the distance you think you are capable of covering. That thumping in your heart, and that panting in your chest at the start of the race is your mind’s anticipation of the fatigue to come. But if you can focus on putting one foot in front of the other, the noise will fade and you will run farther than you ever thought possible.
This is not to say burn yourself out. If you can afford to rest, always rest. But on the days when 4pm creeps up on me and my excuse for not writing is, “Its too late to start now. I’d probably only get 10 minutes in anyway…” I’ll remind myself to Do It Anyway.
Ten minutes … Three… Do It Anyway.
And that’s where I’m at this Thursday. Learning to focus on the steps and not the thumping in my heart. Until next week, I’m wishing you all the very best of company. ♥️
Progress Bar . (50,500) words🦧