Monday, May 16, 2011

Wordy Day

This morning I am feeling quite emotional.  It is typical of me after major life events to turn introspective, evaluating the moments of the past.  I am filled with gratitude of all the players in my life and the love that they share with me.  Mostly, I feel the love of God the Father and his master plan at work in my life.

Reflecting on the last 3 weeks is bittersweet.  So many wonderful memories and moments that will live with me forever.  Consequently, there are also moments I wish to forget, and the ones that I took advantage of and didn't live out to full potential.  Regardless I can look back at April and May 2011 with fondness and the knowledge that my life is truly blessed.

Biking all day, everyday in Hilton Head will always be one of my favorite memories!  Honestly, Hilton Head goes down as one of our all time favorite vacations ever!
Not to be forgotten was our delicious meal at Roastfish and Cornbread, our day trip to Charleston and our 2 mile bike ride on the beach with no pedaling!
Once we arrived home from Hilton Head, we were greeted by out-of-town friends, and other awesome friends who helped us accomplish the amazing task of refinishing the deck!
We spent a lot of time that week preparing the house for all of our guests the following weekend.
And of course I spent the entire week in the kitchen preparing for Forbes' 30th Birthday Bash!
The Big Day came and all pieces were in place.  The guests were in town, the food was ready and the party went off without a hitch.  Perfect weather, great wine, and wonderful friends!
These are the moments I look back and wonder if I could have taken better advantage of.  I spent quality time with all of our guests, but I was a bit of a stress-ball.  I am not sure I was very much fun to be around.  But you know what?  It wasn't about me...and I know that Forbes appreciated all of the hard work and really enjoyed his birthday this year!
I didn't have a moment to waste, and the minute the party was over, the mess was cleaned up, and our guests were on their way back to Chi-town I busied with preparations for the New Balance Girls on the Run.  My house went from pristine...
...to cluttered very quickly!
My garage was a dumping ground for packages, shipments and all things race-related.
And despite the calendar packed with events for the week, and the endless to-do list, I kept my cool, stayed calm and very organized!  I even found time to use my two new appliances, the bread maker and the donut maker!
I hosted a Volunteer Appreciation Dinner for all of our fabulous coaches.  This was my favorite event of its kind to date.  The food was great, the entertainment was phenomenal and I got to spend time with all of these amazing women and men!
Finally, Saturday came and it was time to put on a show.  This 5k was different than the many others I have directed.  It was a new location, more people than before, and Molly Barker, the founder of Girls on the Run was scheduled to attend.
I had to remind myself to take a step back and take in all the fun and action, to not let each moment slip away so quickly.  I stood in awe of this amazing organization, the wonderful people involved and I even took a minute to pat myself on the back and let a little bit of confidence fill my soul.  I did this.  I can achieve great things.  Not without the help of many, many people, but I am strong, I am successful, and I am great at my job.

The race came and went and before I knew it Forbes and I were standing in an empty parking lot once again.  It was all over.  And we were hungry.  The next meal goes down as the best in history.  It was good...probably not the best food I have ever eaten, but it was the perfect food for that exact moment.
It was vegan, it was large, and it was already cooked.  All I had to do was slip a $10 bill to the kind gentleman working the booth and it was all mine.  Prior to arriving at Race City Festival, I had no cash on me.  We hustled to the ATM to pull out a $20, and then hustled to the booth to secure our plates of goodness.  That was the fastest $20 bill to ever slide through my finger tips.  I typically spend a lot of time evaluating my purchases, especially when there is cash involved.  Cash=emotion to me.  Not this time...passing over the money was as natural to me as tying my shoes.  I was ready for good food and there was nothing that was going to stop me from inhaling that plate of vegan goodness.

Visiting with my aunts and my grandma is another very fond memory of the last 3 weeks.  It was a hard decision to drive the 3 hours to Westminster after an already long day and I was worried it would be a bad decision.  However, Forbes and I both enjoyed ourselves thoroughly and I am really glad that I got to attend Heather's Graduation Party!
And so that is where I leave it.  Three crazy-awesome weeks!  Full of life, fun, memories, love, family and friends.  Three weeks of my life that I will always cherish.  And that was just 3 weeks of normal life...can you imagine what I will have to say when I return from Africa?

1 comment:

  1. I live in Charlotte! Small world. You will have to come to our Charlotte food bloggers meeting next Sunday if you can!

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