Lessons tagged posts

Gratitude

October 10, 2015 Recovery  2 comments

You hear it all the time.

"Thank you. Come again."

"Thanks much!"

"Thanks again."

"Thank you for..."

"Thank you for not..."

Whether it's acknowledging someone for waiting and holding the door open so you can easily enter or exit or it's because your grandmother slipped a $20 bill in your birthday card, we tend to respond with these simple words of gratitude: Thank you.

Most of the time we realize the reply is genuine but occasionally we'd have to admit it's nothing more than a rote response; said without thought. Why do we do that? I have a theory. Here it is...

We really don't understand the weight of gratitude. Don't believe me?

How many of us really appreciate the time, sacrifice and love given to us by our parents until we become parents?

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Ashes to Beauty

August 21, 2015 Devotion, Recovery  2 comments

I realize three weeks have gone-by since my last report providing details of my emotional and physical condition as I recover from a broken hip. The reason; there wasn't really anything worth writing about. No one likes to read whining. I know I don't. No one can immediately fix my situation. I know I can't.

A week ago I met with my surgeon who told me post op I would be on crutches for two months. Exactly nine weeks later I drove myself to Kaiser, fully expecting to crutch in and walk out. After 30 minutes of waiting and the 10 minutes it took to get x-rays done, I was sitting in an examination room with my legs dangling and swinging, imagining what it would feel like to carry the crutches rather than have them carrying me. I was told Dr. Le was running late, "He's in the

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I’m Feeling Fine, What’s the Problem?

July 25, 2015 Recovery  No comments

Here it is; another Saturday morning. The sky is blue. The temperature holding right around 68 degrees. I can hear all kinds of birds surrounding the house with their symphony of calls. In the distance the sound of cars, carrying passengers to their daily activities or appointments. The penultimate stage of the Tour de France just ended minutes ago atop Alpe d'Huez. And I'm sitting on the couch. I mention this not to implore sympathy or infer protest, I simply mention it because your day began with similar conditions. It may not be sunny where you are nor would I assume you're on the couch. What I am saying, is your day most likely started without a hitch. You went about your business as usual. Me? Not so much. Typically, I'd be on my bike by now and as I glanced at my training schedule

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You People Say the Darnedest Things!

June 28, 2015 Recovery  9 comments

Good intentions... I suppose that could be the cause.

I remember the first time someone called out my name in a race who wasn't part of my family or a friend who knew me. I had heard that during a race a spectator might see you coming and quickly look up your number in the race program and instead of calling your number, which they noticed on your race bib they would use your name instead. Unfortunately that did not happen, well not until they started printing our names on the race bibs. Then it happened a lot. However, instead of being encouraged by what the person said, oddly I found myself questioning and thinking about the meaning of their words.

"Way to go Daniel... You're almost there!" 

"What?!" I would think. "Did she just say or did he just

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The Little Things Make a Difference

November 3, 2012 Devotion  2 comments

Last week I discovered the saddle angle of my road bike was off by the slightest amount. After a three minute adjustment, I then went for a 2 hour ride which I had rarely done on this bike since getting it in January because it caused my right knee to ache. After making the adjustment my knee didn't hurt at all! "Funny," I thought. It was shortly after January I started having knee problems running... could the saddle position BE the cause for my entire year of pain?

This reminded me awhile back when I headed out for a late afternoon ride. As I pedaled down the Monterey corridor the wind was stiff and giving me a nice little push from behind. While keeping a steady pace at about 28mph and relatively low heart rate, I suddenly felt a sharp burning sensation on the inside of my right

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