Gratitude with a Holiday Blog Party

"Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough, and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion to clarity…Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow."  - Melody Beattie

Ah....Thanksgiving, the holiday where we reflect upon all for which we are thankful.  No gifts, no cards, no parties, no have-to's, no fanfare. The day is all about celebrating what is already there - it's simply a no pressure day, a restful day dedicated to – Gratitude.  Not a day to add or acquire, simply to relish the contentment of what is already present. 

There's been a lot of flutter around the world of the blog, bloggers out there displaying their gratitude lists, as they seek their inner souls for all the good in their lives.  I love reading them, learning more about the special things to those we read about often - things more than just their training.  I, too, have been thinking a lot about gratitude lately, as I do every year at this time.  I like to take some quiet time around this holiday to be still and catalog my blessings…reveling in thankfulness for things for which I am blessed.

Having a bum heel for the past 7093 8 months, not able to race at all nor even run close to my half of my potential, I could be grateful for many thing, such as:

• I haven't slit my wrists.  Yet.
• I haven't fully taken up knitting as my only hobby.
• I haven't bought 50 pair of boots, combing the internet in my running hiatus.
• I haven't adopted a dog.
• I haven't discovered a fondness for ironing.

Yes, all these things I am grateful for, and many more. 

Yet I'll admit it, I have somewhat of a less than gleeful heart this Thanksgiving, not because I do not appreciate all the good in my life, I have plenty and I am very thankful for all, but my heavy heart is because it has not been easy to sit out many, many months unable able to run much, unable to train for the marathon which I hold so dear to my heart, unable to get that thrill by clicking "submit" on a race registration website.  Watching everyone around me training and racing their guts out, doing races I so long to do, yet cannot, has been so demoralizing and discouraging.  My disposition has been pretty much in the toilet - 8 months (really, it's 10 months when you add in that lung fungus I got back in February) I have seen all my previous hard work to get in prime marathon shape slowly slip away from me.  I am a marathoner, it's part of who I am, and I miss it dearly.  It has NOT been easy. 

On a recent, SLOW run this past weekend, I had a mindbender thought about gratitude - and decided it was time for a little gratitude adjustment.  What if I could wrap my pea-brain around being thankful for things that don't normally fall into the blessing category.  I mean being specifically thankful for the things that seemingly do not go right at all: An idea that failed.  A goal that was not met.  An injury.  An illness.  Loneliness.  Reversals.  Struggles.  Weaknesses.  Addictions. Temptations. Setbacks of every kind and every degree.

These types of things do not typically make it onto one's gratitude radar.  Why should I think about them at Thanksgiving?  Why should I consider them at all?

For all these things, the obviously good and the not so obvious, I am going to try to be a little more thankful this week.  I will be thankful I am able to run - some, thankful my heel is starting to cooperate - some.  I'm going to be thankful I did not get the job a couple weeks ago because it really wasn't the job I wanted, therefore my door is now open for the one I do want (when I find it).  I'm going to try to appreciate the little things…the gestures, sentiments and details often overlooked.  I think I owe it to myself to try. 

It is hard to imagine a people more blessed than us here today. We truly enjoy a bounty unimaginable to most throughout the places and ages of the world. This is something worth recognizing and considering!  And what could be more rewarding, and fun, than during the upcoming holiday season to remember to share the goodness in our hearts with those whose lives we are brought together by this common thread - the blog!

Hang with me a second...

I'm not one to get heavily into the holiday spirit - I admit it.  I stress over the rat-race of the onslaught of holiday crazies: putting up a tree, trying to get cards out (quiet "mightly" Kovas!), over-indulging in too much holiday sugar.  The list goes on.  So I thought it'd be kinda fun - in keeping in line with the grateful theme and all - to take a little time out of our crazy upcoming days to do something nice for all of us who have supported and encouraged us along the way, to show our love - our gratitude - to one another and do a little holiday blog world card/gift exchange!!!!

WHAT?? - me, ME, organizing yet something else to add to the chaotic-ness of the holiday madness?  It's all part of being thankful - thankful for all the warm friends I have met through this blog and all I have learned through everyone else's.  I think it will be fun.  And good for us all - to appreciate, and celebrate, the one thing that has brought us all together in the first place. 

So here's what I propose with this little holiday blog gratitude adventure (and it's very late and I'm really tired, so if something doesn't make sense - I promise to work out all the kinks in the upcoming days (hear that Kovas??  I'll be blogging again in DAYS!):

• Leave me a comment if you're interested in a card and about a $5 gift exchange a with fellow runner/tri/cyclist blogger.
• If you took the time to read this entertaining blog, then you have time to do this exchange.  No excuses!  No time-outs!  No substitutions.  Oh....sorry, that's just a coach pep-talk getting mixed in :).
• Canadians (and other farther away places) can partake, just don't forget the U.S. dollar exchange rate.  And your gift may be a bit late, just let your blog buddy know you're from lands afar.
• Leave your email address in a comment, or send me an email if you want your email private: runlikeagirljp@gmail.com
• Do not renege on this once you commit.  Last year, I signed up to do the "Secret Santa" at work - something I usually ba-humbug at, but I was trying to get into the spirit after enduring a pretty crappy fall and thought this was a good attempt to lift my spirit.  The rules were simple: send little gifts for an entire week,place them in your work mailbox with and little clues as to who your Secret Santa was, then on the last day of the week a larger gift was given and the secret was reveled as to who your Santa was.  Um....I got some gum on day one .... and then nothing again.  Ever.  Totally sucked!
• I'll take sign-ups until December 8th at midnight.
• I'll then scramble up all interested bloggers and draw names - each of you will get ONE name to send a card and small gift to.  I will email you who your holiday blog buddy is.
• You cannot ask me for a new name after I send you one.  I don't care if they haven't commented on your blog in 3 years, yet you do theirs daily.  This is your holiday blog buddy, love them with open arms!
• I'm going to have a holiday giveaway for all those that enter this fun-ness - and. it. will. be. FUN. dammit!!  I don't know what the giveaway is yet, more on that as I think about this, but I'm certain it can't beat that scorpion sucker - which somehow got lost in my house (sorry, Jesse - at least you got the gift card!).
• I'll remind you every blog post, so don't worry, you won't forget!
• Spread the word of the exchange on your blog PLEASEEEEE!!!  The more the merrier!
• Here's some great gift ideas below:



Holiday Boxer Shorts!  Sorry, body
parts not included.



Holiday GU or Bars!



How about a festive ornament??



Don't forget your host - runwithjill!

Other ideas could be $5 gift cards to Starbucks or the likes, a bottle opener from Jamoosh's lounge perhaps, running stickers?!?  Chia seeds?  Just a word of caution, though - I recently sent a gift card to a guy I've been working with for a very long time as he finished his first marathon in the onset of a lot of physical and personal obstacles.  It was stolen.  Yes, envelope sliced right open and card removed - sad, eh??  So might be best not to send a thick card envelope and instead put gift in a padded envelope or small box.. 

Who's in????  Come on, it'll be fun.  Maybe.

A VERY happy Thanksgiving from my blog to yours!!