Reflections on Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is always a time of reflection, a time to be grateful for all the blessings we have. The past year has been filled with fun times and some low times. But in the end, we must choose to focus on the good, not the bad.

This Thanksgiving started off at the Run for the Hungry 5k and the experience represented so much of what I have to be grateful for - in no particular order:

First - as the name implies, it was a run for the hungry. I am thankful that I always have food on my table, so I made sure to bring a bunch of food who are much less fortunate than I.

Second - I am thankful for my ability to get out to participate in such an event. I have my health, I am without injury, and have the ability (both mentally and physically) to participate.

Third - I am grateful for the ability to always improve myself. In this case, it was running the 5K and having a PR (2 minutes over last year's race). It was pushing up the long hill and not giving up on myself. Now don't get me wrong, I am still very slow - for lots of reasons the key of which being a lack of consistent exercise - but despite my issues, I still improved.

Fourth - I am grateful for the many friends with whom I shared the morning: Fifth - I am grateful for the "Red Militia"

But for this group of people, I never would have gotten up and participated in the event. Somehow I fell into this group. Now the question of the morning was - "who are all those people in red shirts?" The repeated question made me smile each time that I got to be a part of that group. Who we are is a complex question - but I have but one example.

As we were running the last 1/2 mile or so, I was trying to catch one of the people from that "other" boot camp group wearing black shirts. I was trying to keep up with him, but his pace was slightly faster. As we headed into the last turn and the last 100 feet slightly up hill, he was 5 yards ahead of me. I decided to sprint up the hill. He decided to cruise up the hill. So I caught him and passed him about 5 feet from the finish line. Now does it really matter that I beat him? Not really. Officially we had the same time. Was it really about being competitive? Not really? It was about pushing hard and never stopping until you reach the "finish line." And that's just part of who the people in the red shirts are.

So to all my friends and family - I say thank you. I am grateful for the people in my life and the wonderful experiences I get to have!