Tag Archives: friend

Us

In the beginning I spotted you. Was it because we were in the same place at precisely the same time? There had to be more to it than that. Something about you was different. Something about you caught my attention. Was it your kind eyes, or the happiness you seemed to carry with you like a bouquet of flowers–perhaps it was.

It could have ended there; two people who shared a glance. But it didn’t. I reached out with a polite word, or two, and you responded. We engaged in conversation, nothing profound. Did time seem to lose its meaning for an instant? Did we make a connection–it seemed unlikely.

In the days that followed we encountered each another several times. Was it a coincidence, or did we run in the same social circles? It’s funny I never noticed you before–I found that interesting.

I was curious to know more about you. Something about you mattered to me. My heart was warmed when I discovered that I mattered to you. I decided to trust you. I let you see the real me, not the polite pasted on version of me I use to impress others. You had a way of drawing out the essence of me. Our two separate life stories began to overlap. We were–friends.

As time went on, I felt at home being with you. Home was now–us.

Couch to 5k: Climbing the ladder

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If you’ve read my previous posts on the subject you will remember I’m in the process of ramping up the number of laps I cover on a 400 meter track.  My goal is to walk 13 laps (the approximate distance of a 5k run) hence the post title Climbing the ladder.  With only 3 workouts in the past 10 days it would seem I have not accomplished very much.  But, relationships are as important to your health as physical fitness; an anniversary here, family vacation there and sprinkle in entertaining loved ones.   Each engagement can have a positive impact on one’s mental health.

…Oh yeah, about the exercise thing.  Those three workouts covered 10, 10 and 11 laps.  With each workout I increased the # of 1/2 lap jogs.  The 5k fun run is about a month away so it is time for the final push.

Enjoy what is left of this summer.  Consider spending some quality time with family and friends to work on your mental health.

Trustworthy: 7

Without a doubt the most trustworthy friend we can embrace is the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ.  This hymn, written in 1855 by Joseph Scriven, says it best.father-2903781_960_720

What a Friend We Have in Jesus

1 What a friend we have in Jesus,
All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer!

2 Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged;
take it to the Lord in prayer!
Can we find a friend so faithful
who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness;
take it to the Lord in prayer!

3 Are we weak and heavy laden,
cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge–
take it to the Lord in prayer!
Do your friends despise, forsake you?
Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In his arms he’ll take and shield you;
you will find a solace there.

Couch to 5k: Decision time

In a previous post, my friend asked me if I’d like to run a 5K Fun Run with him.  Incidentally, this experience is unfolding in near real time.  Since he reads this blog, I quickly reassured him his new alias (“Hasty”) was in fact meant to be a compliment.  What runner wouldn’t be proud to have that nickname.

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My glory days!

His proposal rattled around in my head the rest of the day.  I hoped to disqualify it on any grounds, but I couldn’t.  Perhaps the biggest carrot dangling in front of my nose had to do with my previous cross country racing experience back in the day.  Wouldn’t it be immensely gratifying to relive those glory days one more time?  My age (I graduated 4 decades ago) and my weight  (+70 pounds since my college running days) were obviously huge concerns.

I disclosed my delemma to my wife and son hoping they could inject a measure of reason to my aching brain.  Both of them initially voiced concern about my knees but I assured them they were a non-issue (at the moment).

Patty reminded me, “You keep talking about wanting to lose some weight.  Maybe this is how you get there.”

Further encouragement came from my son, “Google ‘couch to 5k’.  You can be ready in 8 or 9 weeks.”

I shared this information with Hasty the next time I saw him.

“That’s great news. If your wife’s on board, then it’s a done deal!” he said.

Be sure to check in every 2-3 days for progress reports on my Couch to 5k experience!