Movement. “Just keep running!”
This morning on my run, I decided to focus on one sound I was hearing. To find a sound, focus on it, and be with it so that I could learn what message it could teach me today. It could’ve been the birds singing, the cars driving by, the sound of laughter as kids were playing, the lawn mower running, etc.
When observing the various sounds around me, I heard a gentle, yet profound sound to me. It resonated with me. It felt familiar. It was comforting to my soul, yet I had to listen closely to hear it.
It was the sound of my foot steps on the pavement.
As I realized this sound and focused on it, the message came.
The steps I have taken each day have given me the opportunities and experiences I have had.
It didn’t matter to me how fast I was running, because in that moment, I recognized with each step, I was making A LOT of progress!
When I started running consistently, I had 2 goals for myself:
1. Run each day (except on Sunday I walk)
2. Just keep running.
It didn’t matter how far I went or my pace. What mattered to me, was that I kept running. Sometimes a walk may have been faster, but it brought so much encouragement to me, to go running without judgement; knowing that whatever I could do that day was enough.
There is a quote that says “do one thing every day your future self will thank you for.”
I remember a particular moment in my life when this quote was a reality to me.
I had just moved to Hawaii, and while swimming in the warm, clear water at Hapuna Bay, I turned around to look at the beach and the beauty of all that was around me. In that moment, I realized, all of the steps I had taken up to that point had gotten me to where I was able to receive the blessing of living in Hawaii! My education, my entrepreneur efforts, risks taken, and every comfortable AND uncomfortable thing I did day in and day out for years, built upon each other to give me that experience.
Sometimes we can feel like our steps aren’t making a difference or that our pace isn’t fast enough, but in reality, they all build upon each other. It is the daily decisions that create our future opportunities. Keeping this in mind brings hope and enthusiasm for life!
Think of a gate. It opens and closes, swinging widely by a HINGE! Small things make a difference.
What will you do today that your future self will thank you for?