52 Marathons in a Year

I subscribe to Semi-Rad’s newsletter and today I read his post about how he finished 52 marathons in a year. OMG – I love that goal.

My last post I wrote that my only goal in 2020 is to finish a 100 Mile race. But ….. I read Semi Rad’s post and feel like that might be a thing. I have a few days to decide. What I like about his plan in 2019 is that he just ran it on his own, most weeks. He did some organized races, which I could do, too, but mainly just ran 26.2 at one time, 52 times in one year. Now that is a commitment.

Okay, I don’t need to think about it. I’m doing it.

New Goal: 52 marathons in 2020.

If you don’t know Semi Rad, Brendon Leonard, you should. This is my favorite graduation speech that I just love, love, love and posted about before.

People may call you stubborn—that’s OK.
Stubborn is just a dirty word for driven, and driven people get things done.

Cory Booker 2020

Environmental Justice and Climate Change

Health Care is a Human Right

Reproductive Rights

Ending the Gun Violence Epidemic

Affordable, Safe, and Inclusive Housing For All

These are the reasons why I’m choosing Cory Booker at the NH Primary.

Books to Read in 2020, Book Lists

So many lists of books to read.

Although, today, I found this from the Critic’s Notebook (NYT)

Critic’s Notebook

I’m adding Wendell Berry to top reads in 2020.

Other lists:

Top 10 Outdoor books, although I’ve read most of them.

This looks interesting:

And, of course, the ultimate list, the Best Books of 2019.

I’m currently reading Second Mountain.

“Happiness comes from accomplishments; joy comes from offering gifts. Happiness fades; we get used to the things that used to make us happy. Joy doesn’t fade. To live with joy is to live with wonder, gratitude and hope. People who are on the second mountain have been transformed. They are deeply committed. The outpouring of love has become a steady force.”

What I Know For Sure

My friend Kendra is crazy about the sunrise. A few times a year she makes a concerted effort to see a sunrise in New England because they are part of her family history. Today she posted on her Facebook page a quote from Oprah Winfrey about a sunrise from Oprah’s book about knowing what is true. Here is the quote Kendra used in her post while capturing a most wonderful sunrise while on vacation in South Carolina: “that every sunrise is like a new page, a chance to right ourselves and receive each day in all its glory.

Her post reminds me of an article I clipped from Oprah Magazine in 2012. I remember something about instincts and trusting your intuition but I have to go back to my archives (a.k.a. my notebooks and journals) to find the article I clipped. 

I find it instantly and see that it was written by Winfrey in May 2012, a few years before she published her book, What I Know is True. 

In the article Oprah reflects on a photo of she and Jesse Jackson. She writes about how the photo transports her back in time to her first celebrity interview and, as a news reporter, she was covering Jackson’s speaking engagement at a local high school.

She goes on to write in the article, what I feel is something true about me that gets lost in daily work and living, 
“I had a fondness for telling other people’s stories, extracting the truth of their experience into digestible nuggets that could inform, inspire, or benefit someone else. Still I was uncertain about what to say or how to say it. The truth is, I was just moving on instinct.

I love this story and I love re-reading it often, and being reminded about it. Oprah was moving on instinct at an early stage in her career but didn’t know it was working for her until much later. How many times have I done something on instinct, hoping it works out, not knowing? A lot! 

So when Kendra writes about something that she knows is true, I remember what is true for me: trust my instincts and going with it. Use that intuition without knowing the outcomes. Sometimes following my instinct has led me down a path of fear and anguish, and other times I’ve had experiences that have changed my life for the better when I trusted my intuition. [moving to Tucson, moving back to Colorado, moving back to New Hampshire]

“Trust your instincts. Intuition doesn’t lie.”

Some days I complain to the ones I love about how hard everything has been lately for me but a little quote I see, briefly, this morning, reminds me how lucky and fulfilled I really am. Life is challenging almost every second of it but I’m so happy with the people in my life, the ones who stay in my life. If only I could keep this thought when my brain takes a downward dive into doubt and despair. What I know for sure …….