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Lesson to Self #12: Be really good at the little things

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My husband and I attended the USAG Virginia State gymnastics championships this past weekend. Our granddaughter, a spunky and spry 10-year old was competing and had a great day, coming away with a podium finish in the all-around as well as individual medals in each of the four events. She was quite happy, and we continue to be enormously grateful for her God-given abilities. Addy has been scoring quite well this season, after losing the entire 2024 season due to a badly broken arm and subsequent surgery. She has come back strong, showing resilience and conquering any remnants of fear and trepidation. That said, her golden ring of scores—a 38.00—remains to be earned. Sunday she came ever so close: 37.850 and that got me thinking. That barely noticeable body position corrections on beam cost her 0.1 for each one. Her beautiful and graceful floor routine was ever so slightly off from the music. Another tenth or two deduction. Perhaps the judges saw her feet slightly misaligned: minu...
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Lesson to Self #11: Seek quiet

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  There it was. A boulder among boulders tucked into the steep ridge line.  Directly trail-side, it wooed the passerby to sink into its bowl-shaped curvature and lean against the naturally molded backrest. Once seated, the struggle of tackling the terrain was carried away on the wings of the gentle breeze. With trekking poles set to the side, the world became quiet. Not devoid of sound, given the rustle of scurrying squirrels through leaves and cacophony of birdsong. But the solitude I felt was calming. Across the valley, verdant mountains covered in green rose against the blue sky, wispy clouds playing on currents of air. I doubted the presence of another human within miles and miles. I took it all in before continuing my journey, refreshed, renewed, and restored. The world is a noisy place—literally and figuratively. Sounds of traffic and sirens. Music blaring through speakers. Social media touting messages often intended to raise the ire of the reader. But life is noisy in ...
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Lesson to Self #10: Be kind and caring

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It was a beautiful wedding in so many ways. The bride was a former Division 1 athlete whom I had the privilege of mentoring for several years. The groom, a commercial pilot, I had never met. Still, I was thrilled to be invited to this matrimonial celebration. My husband and I were seated for dinner at the table with the groom’s grandma, two sisters and their husbands, and his younger brother. We wondered if we would have anything to talk about. Our wondering came to an abrupt halt when we realized that they all lived in my hometown, had attended the same high school as me, and were members of the home church of my youth in Perkasie, PA. Though it had been 48 years since I left that area, we knew some of the same people, now the elder members of the congregation. But the most startling find was that they knew—and loved—my dear mother! “She was so kind and caring every time I visited her. She even remembered that I had a granddaughter at Liberty University,” shared Grandma. “She was such...
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Lesson to Self #9: Be Respectful

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Yesterday I had the distinct privilege of speaking to a roomful of enthusiastic high school students. Prior to my first word, they did what high school kids naturally do in a cool setting: play ping pong, chat, and finish off their Starbucks drinks. But once called to attention, they quickly took their seats and settled in. I had roughly 30 minutes to story tell, urging them to courageously embrace doing hard things. I did not see any student who failed to listen intently, some leaning forward in their seats as if to capture each word more effectively. And when I was finished and the principal asked some questions of me, she opened the floor to the students. Several quickly raised a hand to offer their perspective on the topic before the entire group gathered around to interact with me up close and personal. This group could have easily become the poster children of respectful behavior. I contrast that experience with another encounter, this time all high school senio...
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Lesson to Self #8: Learn to be trustwilling

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As I was in the middle of a weight training session I listened to a podcast named Wild Ideas Worth Living.  As Erik Weihenmayer was interviewed, it was impossible to be amazed at his feats: climbing Mt. Everest, reaching the peaks of the tallest mountain on each continent, paddling through the Grand Canyon, ice climbing—and so much more. But here’s the thing. Erik is blind. Not visually impaired but blind. Like he sees nothing. Nada. Just blackness. Whoa! How in the world does he do this? He has developed echolocation strategies to help him leap across deep crevasses. His fingers and feet help him identify holds as he ascends rock faces. And he listens intently—and follows—the instructions and cues given by his companions. In fact, he said “Yeah, one of the weird, hidden gifts of blindness is that you have to trust people to get things done. I will tell you straight up, blind people, as far as I know, do not climb mountains, do not climb Everest or kayak the Grand C...
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Lesson to Self #7: Be patient

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Years ago when I was working as a perfusionist, I heard the operating room manager belt over the intercom, “I want patients and I want them NOW!” Those of us who heard her cries for quick and efficient patient transport to the OR stopped dead in our tracks. We had never heard this women exhibit such animated frustration before. But then, after a moment of astonishment, we all broke out in raucous laughter at the obvious but unintentional play on words. She was certainly not exhibiting much patience while waiting for patients. Patience is hard. Who likes to waste a lot of time waiting around for something to happen? Absolutely no one. But is the time spent waiting actually a waste? Even though it may feel that way, I propose there may be value in the wait. I wrote about developing more resilience in Lesson 5 of this series. There, I shared about my mysterious injury to my right leg that came out of nowhere on Jan 12, 2025. Well, here I am, two weeks out from my steroid injection in my k...
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Lesson to Self #6: Accountability

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My 10-year old granddaughter is a competitive gymnast. After missing last year’s entire season due to a fracture of her right radius and ulna that required 2 plates and 6 screws to fix, she has been making up for lost time. She has had some stellar performances, earning her podium recognition on every event as well as all-around in every meet this season. But that changed this past Sunday. Her four routines were solid, scoring between 9.175 and 9.50. Those were not her best performances but they were certainly not poor scores. Admittedly, Addy was not perfect but avoided any major breaks.  Her execution was pretty, making watching her a pleasure. By the time the awards came around, we were pretty sure that the clinking of medals around her neck was sure to follow. And clink she did, ending up with three shiny medals: beam, bars, and all-around. But for the first time all season, she failed to find a place on the podium in the other two events. Hum. How would she ta...
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