It's Not Magic, It's Acceptance

I have been inspired!  A friend of mine had foot surgery about 6 months ago and was unable to walk much less run for quite a while.  I could relate to her because I had vein surgery once and could not run for 6 weeks.  It was brutal to not have my normal coping mechanism, running, available.  Well, I made it through that trial and so has my friend.  In fact, she just completed a half marathon.  Congratulations!  She helped waked me up, not literally but mentally and emotionally.  I need to get my butt back to working hard.  Yes, I've been through some rough and testing times over the past 6 months and I feel I've done the best I could in the area of exercise.  I've kept running and that is good.  I have not run fast nor long distance but I revel in the fact that I still pushed forward each week and did run.  I believe we must all accept that sometimes the best we can do one day is not the same as others.  Now, as I have healed and had some tremendous accomplishments in my life, I am able to move forward in bigger steps.  Another friend of mine agreed to tackle 6 miles this morning on a beautiful sunrise trail run.  Acceptance was a central theme in my thoughts as we ran and that is my topic for today, acceptance.

We all face trials in our lives.  We all make mistakes in our lives.  At some point, likely multiple times, we come to a point where we must come to terms with our situation.  We must accept not only that we are the reason for where we are at.  It isn't always someone else's fault.  We must accept accountability and responsibility for our actions and our decisions.  That is the tough part.  Next, comes the joyful realization that we have the power to make the change.  It only stands to logical reasoning, we got ourselves here, thus we can get ourselves to a different place.  I truly believe though that one can not fully embrace their ability to change without first accepting responsibility for where they are at.  Maybe one person is over the weight they want to be and have been most of their life.  They may lay blame on their upbringing, money, not having support, can't stick to a diet.  There can be a myriad of reasons you come up with.  There will be no change though until you reach the realization that there is no magic pill, no way for you to bury what has brought you here, no running away.  You must accept, deal and move forward.  My run this morning helped cement that for me.  I did 6 miles, more than I have done in 6 months.  Yes, my friend encouraged me by agreeing to wake early and run but ultimately we each made the decision ourselves to actually get out of bed and run.  It's definitely easier with help but you must make the choice.  Surround yourself with your friends, your family, your support, your faith.  They will help but remember, they can't do it for you.  Find it in yourself.  Accept where you are at and realize that you can move to where you want to be in life.  You have the strength and ability within yourself.