Image by author Pouring rain, but I wanted to walk. I’ve been known to do an “umbrella walk”, but that’s for short distances. The bent arm holding the umbrella for too long shuts off its blood flow and takes weeks to unbend. Or that’s what it feels like. I could have gone to the gym, but why take advantage of my membership fee? I could have walked on the treadmill at home, but that’s so yesterday. What were my other options? Only one stood out — set my alarm for o’dark mornin

Image by author Go, go, go, go!! Keep it up! Do better, dammit! You got this!! Sigh. Does it always have to be so frenetic? But, question: Is the only way we can imagine we “have this” through never-ending accomplishment? Is it possible that the simple, unfathomable fact of our existence is enough to celebrate every single day? I’m not suggesting we shouldn’t want to accomplish things, to move forward, attain goals, “nail it”, as it were. But after all these years coaching bo

Image by author The news hit my Google feed the other day: Rachel Entrekin just became the first woman to win the Cocodona 250-mile ultramarathon in Flagstaff, AZ. It might seem like big news to many, but to me, and surely others, I was like, of course she could win that race. It’s up for grabs. All it takes, once you’re capable of such a thing, is everything aligning just right, which is a lot of things, but not an impossible amount, as she proved, or as any winner does. I n

Image by author The other day on my walk, I spotted a pickup truck parked in front of the home of two beloved neighborhood friends whom I know from streetside chats as we pass each other on walks. The couple’s dog, a Doberman Pinscher, is my favorite dog of all time. I hug him when I see him. The truck had something white sticking out of its bed, and I wondered what it was. As I got closer, I could see that the white thing was a stash of yard posts used to hold hanging signs.

Image by author The other week, I drove my husband and son to the movie theater, pulled into a parking space, excited about seeing Project Hail Mary—first movie in a theater in a long time. Everyone reached for the car doors as I reached for my wallet, small shoulder bag, phone — oh, noooo! NO PHONE!! You’ve got to be kidding! Nope. Not kidding. I’d left it plugged into the charger at home. If you ever feel naked while fully clothed, it might be because you left your phone at

Image by author Yes, this is another story derived from one of my walks around the general vicinity. But I swear it didn’t come from sticking my over-friendly curiosity into every living situation. Instead, this time, the situation came looking for me. My progress on foot was going nice and smooth among the trees in the woods, along the hard, dirt trail, past the creek and the homes in the distance — and don’t forget the deer: the coolest creatures to size humans up with near

Image by author It’s April, so that means one thing for marathon runners out there: Boston Marathon time. It also means I receive my annual flick of a reminder that things don’t always pan out as you fear they will. I learned that at my first Boston Marathon, and I’ll always thank that race for this life lesson. It was April 2007 when I stood in my hotel room in Boston, eyes glued to the TV screen while readying myself for the most exciting race I’d entered to date, the Bos

Image by author You won’t believe me when I tell you this, but last week my sister texted us siblings that she’d just won $38 million. She included a photo of her hand holding the ticket. I lay in my bed, having just woken up, stunned. What on earth? I looked online, and indeed the number on her ticket was the winning number. The pot stood at $38 mill. My mind halted. This is insane . I texted her back. This is crazy!! I checked the number online, and, yes, that is the winnin

Image by author It was a magnificent day to be outside, and everyone knew it. This must have been clear to anyone with a drone view of the area, or to a bird: scads of people along the side of the road, in their yards, scattered about on the trail, everywhere, and dogs, too. Spring had, without question, sprung. I was upbeat. Shorts and short-sleeved shirt for the first time this year. A pack on my back with a water bottle because no doubt, I’d be thirsty. I had goals — walk

Image by author, originally published 4 years ago Hey, friends. I hope this post finds you well. I'd like to make you an offer you can't refuse. I'm taking the week off from the blog, and this enables two things: more time for me to get things done over here, and a bit of time for you to do something on your end over there. My offer: If I can take this time off, so can you--even for the five minutes you'd normally have spent reading this. What could you do in this moment that

Image by author The other week, I was invited to a 95-year-old’s birthday party. While it was a celebration of the impressive span of her life, I realized it was also a tribute to human resilience in its many forms. At one point, I stood there in the community room at the nursing home and looked around at the partygoers. What struck me was how much tenacity must be sitting in that room. Then I was hit with a somewhat sad question: How many of those who hold this tenacity don’

Image by author I could see it as soon as I sat down at the kitchen table. It was fussing with something on the ground, perched slightly above on a piece of decayed branch. I immediately ran for my birding binoculars. A hawk so close to my view, a busy one at that, possibly perched there for longer than a fleeting second? What luck! I skid back into the chair and slammed the binoculars onto my face. Check it out. A hawk fiddling with something. What is that thing? I watched,