When Life Gives you Lemons....Make Lemonade!!!: May 2017

My Journey on a Break from Ironman. Sometimes, life just tells you, you need a break. So this year. After a long year of training in 2016. I’ve given myself permission to not do an Ironman for 2017. It was a tough decision. Because I think I have been using Ironman training as a way to cope and avoid a lot of other things in my life. I used it as a way to not fully engage in life, and the things that I’ve not allowed myself to think about because I’ve been to scared to admit them to myself. So this year, is my “Year of Taking Control of the Basics”. My Health, My Wealth, and my Happiness.

#34 Make it home to Michigan for my twin nephews high school graduation. (and my honoray niece). I also had another niece and nephew with birthday's. I almost got to see everyone, but time was just too short.

It was so good to see the family again. It's the first time I took and Uber (to and from) the airport. Was actually not bad at all. I do like the benefit of being 15 minutes away from the airport... I thank my amazing current roommate for watching my boys so I could head home for a week to visit family. I haven't flown in over 3 years, since being a traveling therapist, I just drive everywhere I need to go, and I have everything I need with me. Was nice to just have a backpack and a small suitcase for the week. And I got a nice dose of May rain all week.

It was a good trip home. I have to admit it was pretty sureal to sit up in the stands as I watched my nephews graduate from high school where I graduated from. Such a huge amount of mixed emotions. I was feeling my age and a bit sad, knowing that I will never probably get this opportunity to watch my own child graduate. I'm so grateful that I have loving brothers and sister in laws that blessed me at least with nephews and nieces to spoil and love. Listening to the graduation speeches, I also sit and wonder, what have I really accomplished in my last 25 years since graduating from high school? Was I so full of those moments thinking I would change the world? I just knew I wanted to help people in some form of health care background. Man, has it really been that long? 25 years? I ponder what I have done to help change the world and make the world a better place. I ponder where life and the good and bad experiences has taken me. I thought I would be married with my own kids now, and yet, here I sit, alone and single with my family. Feeling slightly out of place, yet feeling it's where I belong and where I don't belong. And seeing my parents getting older, and starting to need more help, I start to wonder where my life will be in the next 5-10 years.

I'm in a melancholy mood tonight..... So, I think I'll stop my pity party ramblings, and just post my photos from my trip home.