I talk and think of value in life almost every day. I have had quite an awakening over the past few years in my life that have made me feel value more than ever. I’ve taken a few different steps and I believe every step I have taken have all been in the proper direction for me. When I say I have had an awakening I truly believe my eyes have become conscious of life in ways that I saw many years ago but my vision was clouded by my teenage years and other different events in life. As I embarked on my Boston journey I have rediscovered this vision.
I had an opportunity to speak to a group this morning on surviving my accident and never giving up in life but what I found myself speaking on most was the value of life. I spoke of how we never know what the next second of our life holds. For me it was one second bee bopping out on the town with some friends as a child and the next second I recalled nurses picking me up off the hospital floor and realizing I couldn’t walk anymore. This is what I mean when I think value… Then I move 20 years later to standing at a marathon watching people run to their dream, a finish line of all finish lines The Boston Marathon, and the next second hearing screams and seeing faces of distress because someone blows up that dream. This is another good classification I have had of value in my life. Everything that has shown up in my life since that Boston event I see from the perspective of it is teaching me and leading me to share more of my story of survival in life.
After I spoke with the group I headed back home. On my drive home I had a chance to reflect back to all the information I gave. I spoke to everyone on this purposeful feeling that has come over me within the past few years. I let them all know that following my dreams of running and getting into Boston has lead me to this area of life. I encouraged them all to follow their own dreams weather it is running, working out, writing or just being the mom, follow it with all the passion they have in their heart. It does take sacrifice and it will take facing giants along that path but in the end you will feel completely fulfilled. As people began asking me questions on hard times I had faced in my life I actually didn’t tear up, I didn’t let emotion take over me like I have in the past. I held my head up high and began speaking directly from the heart. I explained, those obstacles we all face characterize us. The moment I fell on that floor and realized I couldn’t walk defined me in one way and the moment I heard those bombs go off in Boston in April defined me in other ways. I have learned to recognize and pay attention to these events, and I see they were all sequences in the process of this purpose.
To end this entry I want to say I have always believed my life will go in the right direction simply because of my faith. It took different circumstances to enlighten my mind to the lesson that our life is given to us simply to give away. I feel that if I can use my life to encourage and motivate by sharing my strength, it is the greatest blessing I could have been given. But importantly I want to say, I believe this same faith will take me straight to another big dream I have had for such a long time, my Boston Marathon Finish line…. “Never Give Up, Never Give In, Never Stop Trying, NEVER EVER GIVE UP”….