Keep Going

I tend to be a media over-sharer. I'm not going to lie, but it (Facebook, Twitter, etc) really helps me stay connected and feel involved. My love affair with social media has been a way to distribute information. All information. So, if we're friends, followers or LinkedIn, you may have heard that I recently lost my grandmother. She meant the world to me. We traveled, laughed, flirted, and embraced life together. We were kindred spirits, shared the same zest for life and interest in story-telling. Whether it was shaking it to a reggae band, or flirting with the TSA agent, country music star, or truck stop cowboy, she lived life with total abandon and without regret.

 

Last Monday, she lost her 3 year battle with cancer. As someone bluntly put it: we got 2.5 years longer than anyone expected. And boy was it a full 2.5 years. She was quite the fighter. Grammy was determined to continue living even though the doctor gave her a Stage 4 death sentence. She went on to flirt her way around Branson Missouri, dance her way into hearts of Jamaican hotel employees, celebrate her great grandkids' milestones, and inspire many people, myself included. The diagnosis was bleak in January of 2010. But Grammy decided she wanted to keep going. She wasn't done here. How simple. And effective.

A lot of people think there's a secret formula for success. Or that some people can succeed and others can't. I'll tell you the secret: Keep Going. It sounds so simple and yet it's one of the hardest things to do at times.

One application was during my half marathon. My friend Ariel had mentioned a mental strategy to keep pushing forward: Dedicate a mile to someone. That way, it increases your desire to complete it. That mile (or miles in my case) become more important because they aren't just for you anymore. So, I dedicated a good portion of my 13.1 miles to Grammy. And I kept going.

So now, after losing someone so important, I have to keep going. There isn't any other option. I mean, I COULD curl up in bed with a jar of Nutella and season 3 of Pretty Little Liars, but that would defeat all of the progress I've made in changing my lifestyle and creating a path to health and fitness. How do you deal with such incredible loss if escape and depression are options that are taken off the table? You keep going. Keep lacing up your shoes and hitting the pavement. Keep practicing your wobbly Half Moon pose. Keep eating clean and avoiding processed foods. What would Grammy want me to do? No question needed. Keep going, of course.

The key to success is persistence. Slowly, but surely. How many fables, proverbs, and inspirational quotes have you heard regarding water or turtles or persistence? A ton, I bet. “In the confrontation between the stream and the rock, the stream always wins; not through strength, but through perseverance.” The time is going to pass anyway, so why not keep going? Keep working towards your goal. It's a lot harder than it sounds. The easy way out is to give up. But giving up means failure, and for me, failure is not an option. This is my life were talking about, right? So I have to keep going. That's what Grammy would do.