Yes, I enrolled in a 6 month Leadership Training with 9 others from around the country that culminates in 5 days of Hiking Machu Picchu.

What I have and continue to experience and learn has been far beyond my expectations….. how do I best explain for you to FEEL the growth and experience? Read the following from Jamin, co-Founder of Align, Marathon and Mountains;

Hi Bob

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by emotions that just won’t budge? 

Maybe they show up as those heavy, dense feelings that often feel impossible to shake: shame, guilt, attachment, or fear. 

I know that weight. 

The past year has been one of the most challenging of my life. At times, I wanted to push it all away through exercise, food, social media, distractions that seemed harmless. But I made a different choice. I chose to feel it all. 

And in choosing to feel, I expanded my capacity to hold more. More intensity. More depth. More life.

Here’s what that looks like for me:

I slow down. I breathe into the emotion. I feel it. I give it space. I validate it. I allow it. I bring compassion to it. I say, “Fair enough. This experience is valid.”

And then, I let it move however it wants to move. Maybe through breath. Maybe through movement. Maybe through sound. Slowly, with consistency over time, I arrive at a place of perspective and, ultimately, forgiveness.

This practice has strengthened my resilience, deepened my self-trust, and brought me to a place of true peace with my past.

Holding on to the past, whether that be regret, unprocessed emotions, or stories that no longer serve you, only weighs you down. But learning to process and move emotions? That’s where true freedom begins.

Big love from Guatemala,

Jamin 🤠

Jamin Heppell
Co-Founder and Alignment Coach 

Recently I was reading an article in the Sunday Paper entitled “What’s in Your Tool Box?!”  Accepting my limitations as a DYI Home Improvement Guy, I thought I would read to see if there where tips to enhance my perceived and very real handyman limitations.

However as I was reading, I found my thoughts wandering off to a different type of TOOL BOX,  “What is in my PERSONAL TOOL BOX” that I need to move the meaningfulness and purposeful needle in a positive direction in who I am and can be.

Have you ever reflected and thought, “Gosh, I sure wish I had!” or “If I could do it over I would have…..”  I am sure, like myself, you have had those thoughts on occasion. Why not? We are human and guessing all have made mistakes or missed the mark at times. I know and have regrets in life, (I am not complaining, in fact I feel blessed with my life overall, however self-assessing is never bad as it help for the future and makes us stronger). I sense I am not alone, and fact that I have company does not make my own disappointments easier, but it does make me feel I am not unusual in that perspective.

Happiness, Joy, Satisfaction, Regret and disappointment decisions can be like a fork in the road, not a literal one, but one where we are confronted with alternative paths. As I get older, I have learned that the options in how we will deal with the fork in the road of life are multiple and each alternative has its own set of consequences…….whether good or not as desired. We need to dig through our tool box and decide what tool we will use.

We could blindly take whatever tool is easiest to grab and take a “WHAT EVER, IT IS WHAT IT IS” type attitude, taking the easy direction with little thought of  the situation, job at hand and consequences and let the chips fall as they may, OR actually taking an intentional deliberate approach with a “Stop and Pause!” To ‘pull off the side of the road” read a map, ask for directions type approach, look at what tools are available to us and make a deliberate decision by studying the alternatives and assess the corresponding pluses and minuses of each. Taking these deliberate and intentional actions may be a way to take the best direction in the “fork”, a direction that will take you where you want to go and what you want to experience and give you the best outcome.

This alternative to “It is what it is” can be uncomfortable as you are about to use a new tool, it can nerve racking and at times stressful in the short run, however embracing change, to embrace actions, to embrace what is good has the potential to allow you to take control of the outcome of “IT IS WHAT’s RIGHT,  WANT  I IT TO BE”

So what is in my tool box now and what needs to be added or upgraded? Here are few tool upgrades worth pondering;

• A Better Ruler/Tape measure –  be more measured  in my/our perspectives of others by giving  others greater benefit of doubt, more latitude and to measure more precisely our responses before proceeding and cutting. (No one knows more than I how many trips I have taken the past to Home Depot to get a new board because I did not measure, confirm and validated before I cut!)…lets be more measured.
• Get a Rubber Mallet, a softer hammer – The tough guy, overly blunt and at times demeaning a person approach to a situation may make you feel better, however seldom creates lasting meaningful results. It gets done quickly however It causes “dents” that are hard to remove in a relationship, whether it is personal or business. Think about a softer, gentler rubber mallet.
• Refine the delicacy of the tools – Have you ever watched someone carve or do the delicate finish work on a project? Their patience is remarkable as they search in their tool box for a fine tipped chisel, or a delicate “finishing nail and hammer” , they will accept the time constraint for a better outcome….maybe we need to do that as well as we work on tough problems, relationships or projects. It is not the speed of finishing, but the quality of the outcome that pays significant benefits. Add delicate and finishing skills to our live and relationships.
• Keep my eye on how to improve our trade –  The statement, “Improve or fall backwards” has amazing significance. The rapid nature of how life, careers, opportunities change is accelerating at a rapid pace….we need to slow down and be the lumberjack who frequently stops to sharpen their axe or chainsaw. To sacrifice a little time to improve our productivity and outcome. Seldom is it a waste of time to take the path of “sharpening our axe” to improve our outcome. There is no shortage of resources to help.

So my reading followers, let’s all choose the alternative, reassess our Tool Box and;

“IT IS WHAT IS RIGHT, WHAT I WANT IT TO BE”…not “WHAT IT IS!”

A striking statement, “HOLD FAST to WHAT is GOOD!” and despite the challenge we face today, there is still so much that is good that we need to focus.

Life is full of changes! Changes that if we let it and make it intentional, has the potential to be rewarding, but to gain from change, we need to lower our emotional barrier shield and let change and manifest in us.

What a world we live in. Due to a variety of life and friend events, I had adopted the posture, “embrace today as tomorrow is not guaranteed!” This ever evolving mantra dealt with life and death, to embrace the wonders of friends, the world and those around us. We do not want to have a feeling of “regret or I should have’s”.

It was only 2 months ago the financial world was still in the midst of an amazing stretch of unprecedented market performance and historical record unemployment. Little did we comprehend that 8 weeks later we would be living in the health, economic and social (or lack thereof) world we are experiencing today.

It was not long ago we were reminded by psychologists and social researchers of the positive health aspects of social interaction, social connections and its impact on longevity and quality of life…Today Social Distancing is the buzz. Talk about a 180 social and societal change.

How will life be altered? What an interesting workshop and wine discussion that will be…sounds like more than “A Glass” to me!

This medical pandemic has placed the world, U.S. and local economies to a standstill with more questions than answers. So how do we react in our daily lives and with those we love and care for around us? For one…. “HOLD FAST to WHAT is GOOD!”

You may be asking yourself: “who could have anticipated this?”….well check this TED TALK by Bill Gates:

I have found myself more challenged than normal in finding ways to cope. Being a social human, social distancing is really difficult and causing normal stress and a feeling of being a bit unnerved. It does not help turning on the TV, all we hear is bad news and more doom and gloom….Hello NETFLEX and concentrating blessing and aspects of good and joy.

I am so glad that years ago I worked hard on “control” and realizing that “control” is overrated, and socially, relationship and personally destructive if over emphasis as a personal badge of honor. I realized that thanks to many of Brene Browns books, Ted Talks and public lectures that shedding that shield and letting emotions and others in is not only freeing, but a stress reliever and relationship (both business and personally)builder.

This past weekend I experienced a very personal encounter that put our current situation into a very personal perspective in a way I never expected, this experience made life real and shook me to the core. The experience moved me in a way that has been positive and has moved the needle of who I am a bit more in a positive direction. Let me share a real story from this past weekend;

“In part for a need of some comfort food and in part to support a local Twin Cities based pizza joint, I called in an order for pickup, nothing big…maybe $15-$18. When I arrived, the parking lot had one other customer car, I went to the door that had a sign…”not more than 5 inside at a time!”, I walked in to sense this still, spooky quiet environment, I was the only customer inside, the chairs tuned upside down and on all tables.

The young waitress/hostess greeted me with what I perceived as her normal gracious demeanor …”you must be Bob Strommen, our only pick up order right now….I will be right back, I see it is paid so you can get home and enjoy……she returned with the pizza, I handed her a tip, she said it was not necessary or expected and tried to decline, I insisted, she thanked me, then glanced at the tip… $20, she started to cry…thanked me twice more – her reaction emotionally shook me as it put into perspective how scared and afraid so many are at this time with no real apparent solution on the horizon. It brought to the forefront the need for greater compassion, looking for opportunities to exhibit acts of random kindness and intentionally looking for ways to help those so impacted by something that most have no control.”

Why this story? It puts in perspective how fortunate so many of us are and our ability to: “HOLD FAST to WHAT is GOOD!”

I am not discounting the individual concerns, nor the individual feelings we all are experiencing, on the contrary, I live and feel the pain, frustration and unnerving feelings we all are experiencing. Many of us who are reading this are blessed. Despite the horrific economic, social and health environment, we all have food, we can pay our mortgage and housing, medical expenses and our immediate “quarantined life is survivable”. If we cannot not and are in unchartered waters, are struggling with what to do, there are friends, family who are there to help. If there are none…..jot me a note and let’s see if we find a solution together!

What are my take a ways from this situation and challenge we have in front of us? How do we cope in all aspects of our life; health, social, emotional, financial and faith? I wish I had the answers as there seems to be more questions than answers, but I have learned and continue to be in a daily learning curve that we can and will survive with the help of others.

So here are some take-a-ways that I have learned, or re-learned these past 3-4 weeks:


• What is happening now is REAL, admitting it, internalizing it and accepting it is healthy as denial is dangerous
• Anxiety in whatever form it manifests itself is normal, so do not panic with the feelings we all are experiencing in our own way and at different levels
• We are in an uncertain times, uncertainty creates anxiety, when we see the end of the tunnel light and glimpses of certainty, anxiety will start to diminish
• Take care of family and those you care most for
• Look for opportunities to exhibit random acts of kindness, it will do as much for you as for the receipient
• Spiritual Faith adds significantly to comfort
• Trust and Care adds to faith, empathy and compassion
• Demonstrating faith, empathy and compassion and being intentional in how it is received creates calm and triggers self-care endorphins
• Remove yourself from the daily and constant barrage of news and reports. What are we really learning at this point that we have not already been told? Find the positives on whatever streaming source you trust and rely for heart and life positives

Thank you for reading, stay well, stay healthy, be safe as we will get through this.

Bob

Let me tell you a story! A story of a childhood memory of playful exploration, on the surface the story is just of a great memory, however today I find a deeper meaning and significance of Life Exploration, Parenting, Discovery and Learning about ourselves and others.

The Memory, The Story

One of my childhood friends, DAN, live on a large parcel of land in Roseville in its early days of development of urban sprawl, land with plenty of areas to explore and horses that after we cleaned the barn we often rode.
We built a tree house because we could. This rustic shelter became a guy’s sanctuary from Dan’s little sister. The most magical memory of this backyard, howewever, was that it butted up to a lake as I saw it, but in reality it was a weedy, mucky swamp that begged to be explored.

One of our other friends Dad was a “big deal” (as I remember it) at a trucking company. His dad had delivered to the house 6 used large oil barrels that we were going to use to build a raft, that required our own engineering and need to figure out “how are we going to do this?”……how interesting it is to think, here we were late elementary/early Jr. High and our Parents thought it was cute that we were building a raft to explore this swamp, not once do I remember the statement “where is your life jacket?, or be safe? Or I do not think you boys should be doing this!” how this world has changed in how we parent and view risks and dangers.
We were adventurers, nice boys that just wanted to explore. Every parent just wanted to know how the experience was, as opposed to worrying and deluging us with warning, fear and discouragement.

To the contrary, our  Parents encouraged our exploration, adventure and learning. As you can tell from my writing and posting, I survived!

What a great childhood series of memories as we used scavenged branches that we “widdled off the bark and limbs” with our pocket knives to make poles for navigating the “lake” on our vessel. We actually had a pocket knife, (I am sure my parents bought for me), that we used to clean off the branches and make things….called widdling!, kind of a funny name as I type this.

We were a current version of Huck Finn, not on a river, but on our own small swampy body of water that allowed us to explore, eat bag lunch that our parents made for us as we drifted and polled our way around. I recall that we wondered what was lurking below us in that mucky body of water and were sure that all the other neighborhood kids were amazed and envious of our floating craft and adventurous childhood play.
As I write this, I now am wondering if this was my first experience of being overly prideful, or just proud of our ingenuity, adventure and wholesomeness fun. I sure hope it was being proud as being “prideful” is not healthy and not representative of a healthy persona and personality.

Why this story and this rambling post? It was a great childhood memory and there are some interesting observations and challenges for all of us;

•   Importance of letting our children explore and learn with encouragement and   support
  • Children can be remarkable resourceful and creative if given the opportunity
  • Continue to try and remain engaged in our children’s life and let them do what they want with this encouragement and love
  • Remain vigilant in their safety as the world is not as it was in the ‘60’s. Help them understand street smart awareness of the world around them.
  • Vigilance never stops as our children will always be our children and the love, care, concern never ends.
  • Encourage being proud, not prideful of accomplishments in those around us as self-assurance is a marvelous self-image
  • Exploration and creativity is a powerful trait to allow to be developed at any and all ages
  • Responsibility and street smarts are invaluable
  • Friendships (healthy friendships) can foster emotional, spiritual and life success
  • Life is short and fragile, embrace the adventures that are available to you “now” as “later” is undefined
  • Exploration is not just earthly endeavors, but should include faith and our relationship with God

Thank you Huckleberry Finn for bringing forth this memory and the reminders and lessons it has for us today.

After almost a 6 month hiatus from my writing, I am back to make “Today” and the future Todays magnificent and special.
———————–
An impactful life event has occurred Today, I became an Orphan! Both of my parents are no longer physically with me. That special parental confidant resource is gone. What remains, however, are wonderful memories and what has been engrained within me over the years.

For those of us who are intentional in looking at life events, there is the opportunity for each life event to move the needle of who we are and how we decide to live our lives. To decide how we are going to engage those around us in a meaningful way.

I continue to be reminded that life events can be either positive or negative depending on how we choose to outwardly be impacted. Impacted not only by the event, but impacted by how we choose to react. Personal behaviors we exhibit are our responsibility, how we respond to life events are our responsibility, behavior and personal brand is our personal responsibility. They are all choices we make. With these responsibilities and choices, we make mistakes, hit the golf ball out of bounds or unintentionally stray from our core. I have discovered this in my life and in observations of others that being human exposes us to human mistakes, at times the choices we make are superb, and others we wish there was a mulligan.

If we are intentional and committed for the future as to how we live, our choices give us an opportunity to learn, change and grow.

I am not sure who to credit for this, it was on FB so I am taking the liberty to use. I found this so true and to the point:

As I said to my sister following the death of our mother, “enjoy time with family as life is both fragile and magnificent”. This struck me when I was at the cabin recently and watched Christopher Robin and Whiney the Pooh. (Yes, I watched!) There were many aspects of the movie that struck me, but nothing more than Whiney commented to Piglet as they walked and as illustrated in this photo!

Make today your favorite day, a day to fully embrace

I am still learning! Aren’t we all? Life events give us the opportunity to teach us what it means to have a meaningful life and the impact and the power of friends, family, faith and relationships in life. Maybe I have become more receptive, more open minded, and more intentional in how I am choosing to live? How about you?

How we react to life events to a large degree is being intentional in understanding ourselves and having the honesty, self-confidence and civility to accept our weaknesses and embrace help from others. I have found that embracing life by having grace in focusing on the positive in others and understand that we all, even ourselves, have our own respective flaws.

This has been especially reinforced in a daily dose of grounding as I read Terry Esau’s Book, “Be the Surprise”, In a short text exchange between Terry and I after writing to Terry that his book is one of my consistent surprises each morning , Terry responded;

“Sometimes ‘being the surprise’ feels like a selfish act in that doing good for others makes us feel so good about ourselves, that in turn inclines people to treat us with great kindness. Maybe God intended it to work that way. ‘What goes around comes around.’ Good begets good. Love fosters love. Maybe that’s as close to heaven as we get on this side”

Yes good begets good, however that circle can only start with someone demonstrating kindness first for the shear fact that it is who they are.

Getting back to my Orphan Statius, what have I learned this past month?

• Death makes people uncomfortable.
• Honoring those who have died should be celebrated as no one gets out of here alive!
• The emotions of the death of a loved one is hard to empathize in words of condolences, so just be present!
• People are clumsy, not intentionally, but out of “not really knowing what to say” in expressing their feelings for our loss.
• Despite death, some remain entrenched in lack of forgiveness and remain selfish in actions and engagement. Death does not change some people.
• Life continues to those left behind and we need to embrace life going forward out of honor to those who have passed.
• Letting go is not an action of lack of love, but instead part of the honor that those who have passed would want for us.
• Embrace the magnificence of life ahead while at the same time honor with love and never ending memories of our past.
• To not take life for granted as it is so incredible fragile and magnificent.
• Surround yourself with friends and family for support and work on building and growing your faith and relationship with God.

Remember to Embrace “TODAY!”

It’s the entire book, not just the last chapter!……

..

There are few recaps of any collegiate event that are so iconic in their meaning and association and can stir as much emotion as the NCAA College Basketball National Tournaments, “One Shining Moment.” If you are a basketball fan, or at least a follower of the NCAA Championships, that theme elicits memories and emotions.
CBS sportscaster Jim Nantz put the power of the video montage, shown at the conclusion of the national championship game into perspective: “Every kid that takes this stage, knows the song, knows the lyrics, knows what it means, dreams of stepping foot on that platform come Monday night. That song is really being played for them, dedicated to them.”

Watch the video from the 2016 NCAA March Madness: http://tinyurl.com/z66emqy     (also, do not miss the “shining moment following the championship game this Monday night 2019)

First the obvious: The music touches your emotions, along with the energy and emotions of the young players chasing a dream most of them have had for years. The exhilaration of success in a win and the devastation of their dream coming to an end is felt. The entire team’s entourage is dreaming of winning the last game of the season as National Champions. However, only one team will realize this dream, all but one will experience the wrenching side of a loss. But were there any losers?
What strikes me as less transparent: We see the passion and the love of the game that transcends to success whether it is winning the last game of the season, or just being in the tournament as one of the best 64 teams in the country. We feel the story of the human spirit and the power of dreams, effort, emotions, team work and the overcoming of adversity. It is striving for ONE SHINING MOMENT as a result of a string of countless smaller less transparent shining moments strung together to produce the outcome portrayed.

We see the final outcome, not the journey. What we do not see, as in the case of most significantly successful events, changes, and outcomes are the countless hours in the gym, the sacrifice, the weight room training sessions, all those games of success as well as failure. We do not see what is happening in the locker room. There are countless stories of individuals where sports saved their lives by providing them a scholarship and entry into college where they have the opportunity to be part of a team and to experience the feeling and joy of belonging and success.

Moving off the basketball court, there’s something else we often don’t see: The years of commitment of a young employee in corporate life that culminates in being named CEO. We only see the outcome and say to ourselves, “lucky guy or lady,” or “how cool.” I sometimes reflect on the time I’ve spent mentoring a young person on what it takes to succeed in corporate life; the patience, doing what is needed despite the manager, looking for opportunity, paying your dues, taking some risk, developing relationships, and putting in the hours. I have mentored many, yet only a few will do what is needed. Others find fault in everyone around them for their stagnating corporate career. They fail at reaching their ultimate shining moment as they are not willing to have a series of smaller shining moments on their journey.

We do not see the person who makes a decision to change in order to achieve their personal desires in business, in life, in relationships. We do not see the struggles, the emotions, the leaning into the issues, for something that is staggeringly important. If someone is willing, and has the courage to take the risks and make the commitment to strive for their own shining moment, then they will be willing to seek help from resources beyond themselves.

We do not see the transformation when intellectual knowledge is applied to behavior to bring about change. We do not see the journey or the passion it takes to reach for and attain the desired outcome. We may not see how someone prays that those around them will take the time and have the patience to lean into the journey with them in order to experience the magnitude, joy, and amazement of being part of the final outcome.
Caribou has a slogan, “Life is short. Stay awake for it.” This is meaningful for those who desire to truly be alive and awake for themselves and those around them. This is also meaningful for those “inner circle” people in a person’s life who want to share in the joy and excitement of an amazing future.

What we see in the NCAA’s “One Shining Moment” is that it’s one thing to rejoice in the moment of victory and another to honor the journey that brought us here.

I tip my hat to those willing to do what it takes to make a change, to be humble along the journey, to make the sacrifice and be patient, to strive to be their best, to strive to be part of the ONE SHINING MOMENT through a series of smaller, less noticed shining moments.

As I was out for a walk recently at the cabin I found myself noticing my shadow and how it changes with the changing landscape contour. Have you ever noticed that of your shadow? Have you even noticed your shadow? Have you noticed that it is constantly changing? At times it is long and skinny (not often enough of that skinny version), short and stubby, refracted, and varying based on the sunlight and the clothes you wear. But the constants remain, we cannot out-walk it, we can’t catch it and you are always casting a shadow even though you cannot always see it! We are casting a shadow on others based on how we behave, communicate, handle ourselves and act.

As I think about this, I realize that our shadows are actually rather spiritual in that they are always with us, but not always seen. Sometimes we do not see it as the day is bright or cloudy. We do not see it as it as at times the shadow is behind us or we are being carried and supported by our faith in a place of safety and comfort that has the shadow directed inward or upward.

At times we have physical company and we see two shadows or possible only see the shadow of our companion who has joined us on our walk or bike ride. What a great, yet very subtle reminder, that our attention should be on those you are with, to caste our shadow onto others as it is a tangible demonstration that we are truly listening, not hearing what is be discussed or felt.

What has struck me is that regardless of the shadow of my outward reflection, what is most important is the substance of the spirit that guides my decisions and purpose and the unseen, but felt, shadow caste on others. What is important is the intentionality of kindness and those around me in living a life with a purpose that has meaning.

I am reminded of this as I spend dinners with my 100year old Uncle and my failing 95 year old mother. My purpose in these two situations is tangible in my learning from how they have and are living their lives, and honoring them with intentional 1:1 time. I am being touched with this symbolic foundational purpose for living meaningfully that they are continuing to teach me, by example, of their faith, grace, class and substance in living life intentionally and with purpose.

Recently I was reminded of this when I had given Timberwolves tickets to a young boy and his grandmother to attend. What was so rewarding, so fun, was watching and feeling through photos and texts their happiness, fun and Joy they were having together at the game. My heart was filled with absolute JOY in having done something that was so fun for someone else. I can say that I had the best Timberwolves Game Experience without even being at the game that I have had for a very long time…….Thank you Sandy and Aden for giving me this gift!

The rewards of Kindness are Priceless!

Despite the direction of the shadow we caste, there is a shadow that is cast upon others that can make an impact in ways that we never anticipated or even looked for.

The Timberwolves ticket experience further helped define purpose in living a meaningful life. This helped me better define what the future looks like for me and to realize that our journey is forward moving and not a circle.

Have you ever felt that your journey is going in circles? and you’re afraid you may end up where you started?

Stop and take a PAUSE, close your eyes and reflect, I have done this and found it insightful and thought provoking that has and continues to require a great deal of thought, introspection, trial and error, forgiveness and courage

I have found that it is like peeling an onion, after each layer, there is another and I find myself wondering if I will ever get to the core as I experience ever present disappointments, fears, tears and joy in the journey.

How have I started to learn how to understand and act or change?:
(Maybe you have your own list? Maybe this list will trigger thoughts for you?)

> To understand that I have the magnificent Power of Choice
> I must be intentional to intercept self-sabotage as I am afraid.
> I have needed to nurture the child within
> I have learned to be both gentle and tough with myself
> I have discovered the power to surround myself with others who are positive and what to understand meaningfulness of others
 >To understand that questioning my beliefs and faith strengthens both.
> We are human; practice grace, forgive yourself and praises all that is good
> Have fun and laugh and learn from your mistakes as we all make them
> Be generous and kind
> Become the person you want to be, not who you are supposed to be. Rid myself of  Comparison as it is devastating and not real!
 >Create a plan and be courageous to be with those who can nurture the plan

That’s all I got today…..have a magnificent journey!

How Do We Become the Person That We Know We Can Be?
For starters, being intentional to take my own advice, to listen and be appreciative of others opinion and knowledge!

Or possible better stated, what does our life journey look like and how best to navigate?

There is no definitive answer as everyone would respond to this introspective and growth question differently. However that said I do believe one thing, without growth and continued learning we will experience atrophy and never know the answer for ourselves.

I was recently reading a Rochester Mayo Report on health in preparation for my upcoming physical at the Executive Health Department. The topic was Physical ATROPHY and the importance to remain active as our muscles will quickly lose their strength, resilience, elasticity dramatically impacting quality of life. As I was reading, it became apparent that Atrophy also applies to our emotional and intellectual health as well.

What has struck me is that this 18-24 month ritual of mine has evolved, thanks to Mayo, into a two prong approach; Time with my Dr. Kirk assessing my current physical well-being along with all of the labs and specialties that give me a “once over assessment” as to how I am NOW. Secondly the time with the “Healthy Living Department” to assess, learn and develop habits to hopefully avoid atrophy and to improve the FUTURE. Why do I do this? You see, my objective is to continue to stack the chips on my side of the table to increase the probability of a long healthy, meaningful and high quality life. I am striving to be intentional, to minimize my mistakes, to avoid atrophy and living life with a purpose and meaning. I want to have the physical and cognitive ability to succeed or at least feel I did my best.

HOW MANY PRONGS OF ACTIVE LIVING ARE YOU DOING TO STAVE OFF ATROPHY?

So how do we intentionally delay or eliminate physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual atrophy? What I know for sure is that I do not know all the answers, however feel that my learning curve has accelerated in the right direction on of those areas of atrophy.

I feel I have learned few things on this question;

• IT IS NOT JUMPING OFF THE CLIFF and THEN FIGURING OUT IN MID AIR! There are some actions that may not give you a second chance.
•  The answer will not become apparent without some intentional effort
•  We will make mistakes in our journey
•  You and Me both are entitled to a second chance as we are very human
•  We all have a special gift and the gift we have is not to compare and try to be someone we are not!
• It is critical to not ignore emotional and spiritual grown, keep peeling the onion, I am confident you will discover, as I have, that the core never is reached and each layer has another challenge that was not expected nor anticipated

I frequent the local Caribou and often find myself watching the morning human race come and go. I observe the energy, behaviors, manner and kindness (or lack thereof) exhibited. These frequent observations remind me what is respected, what is tolerated and what I pray I never do unintentionally.

I also have been blessed to spend many days a week at Sister Kenny to support a friend who was struck down with a nasty stroke.

You may be surprised in my describing this as a blessing resulting from a tragedy of someone else, let me explain; This experience of being at Sister Kenny most ever day for a month and now 3 to 4 times a week supporting a friend and having dinner with fellow patients. This meaningful commitment of time has change and impacted me and my paradigm of looking at my own life as a true blessing as I have watched and listened to the stories of patients, their struggles, their thankfulness for life and the staff at Sister Kenny. It has been much like this photo and being reminded that my problems are rather minor compared to others. It has reminded me that to complain to others or in my prayers is selfish and totally insensitive.

So….. What Keeps your Cup Full?

Watch for Part 2 – “Am I Going in Circles?” and Part 3 – “Life Lessons being Learned from Pickleball!”