Blessings...

Did you ever notice how easy it is to be happy and thankful when things are going right? I'll be the first to say I have.

Even worse, sometimes we don't know just how thankful we should be until the world starts crumbling around us. We might have been upset we missed a workout or two during one week, and then the next week we end up getting injured or sick and miss an entire week.

It's just so hard to have perspective sometimes. We're so into ourselves, let's be honest! I'm completely willing to admit that I spend a darn lot of time thinking about me. What will I wear, what will I eat, when will I ride my bike, what will those intervals feel like, what am I shooting for, when will I get home?

I question, and I answer..my little interpersonal dialogue goes on constantly, assessing, evaluating, measuring, and answering my own questions!

People always ask why bad things happen to good people (don't get excited, I'm not going to answer the worlds most evasive question with my pea sized brain over here today). Although I don't have some profound answer I guess I just have to say that this world is so big with so many things impacting one another. It's all relative - aren't we all "good" & "bad" at the same time? Things that are not ideal happen to all of us, yet to those who get dealt an even worse set of cards - especially children, how do we wrap our minds around it.

I believe it all ties together. Unfortunately, we might not see how in this lifetime. What if something that happens to someone allows them to identify with someone else in a way that no one else could. What if through having a terrible disease someone is able to have their voice hear because of their circumstances in such a way that ends up helping millions. Sometimes it doesn't even happen while their alive, it takes more time for their purpose to be completed.

Where is all this going?! I've been thinking about blessings lately and how it's so easy for me to get negative and go down the wrong path. When my face was such a mess I let it consume me at times and I was disappointed in myself for that and I knew I was going to get better (or at least I hoped I would - they did burn me by the way..not nice people).

So much is about how we handle things, our attitude. I know its corny but after I die I would love it if people didn't talk about what I did in my career, or in athletics, but who I was..and if I had an "attitude of gratitude." It's so catching too..did you ever notice that? One minute your yelling at some person in traffic but if you're around someone who's smiling and just happy to be alive you end up changing the way you feel.

I found this and liked it:

Attitude determines how much of the future we are allowed to see. It decides the size of our dreams and influences our determination when we are faced with new challenges. (Jim Rohn)

I'd like to spend today, and every day after, even the hard days (which I have all the time), being thankful for the little things that make my life better. I don't think I did it enough last year when I was all consumed with training for Kona. So many things were right, and so much was falling apart at the same time. Ironman will do that for you.

I haven't been blessed because I'm some "good" person. It really is a gift given from above. I have so many and I want to keep counting them. I don't care if I sound lame. It's the truth.

Maybe someday I'll tell you a story that happened to me recently that only because of what I'm going through was I able to connect to another women and really help her. It was such a blessing and luckily wasn't busy being consumed with me, me, me for like one minute to hear her needs and try to understand. She left me a message the other day that I will never erase. It was better than any store bought gift I could ever receive. Maybe that's why I am where I am right now..who knows.

Ok..enough rambling! I hope this made some sense..who knows! Have a great night everyone (oh..and all my Louisvillers finished happy & healthy!). YOU DID IT AND I"M SO PROUD OF YOU!! ALL OF YOU!!