Streaking with my clothes on!

I have mentioned before that I am an "All or Nothing" kind of gal. Yep! That would be me...I either resist the plate of nachos or I eat the whole thing in its entirety in a matter of minutes! I go on the wagon for weeks at a time, but once I fall off, it is ALL OVER and no can of Coors Light or bottle of chardonnay within a few inches is safe!!

To stay motivated between half marathons, I decided to challenge myself for the month of July to run EVERYDAY! They call that "streaking" in running lingo! You can become a streaker by either running everyday for a certain period of time or you could run the same race year after year and be considered a "streaker". Either way, it sounded like fun to me and it satisfied my "all or nothing" way of life. One lady I read about ran everyday for 365 days and drank a different kind of beer everyday after her run (I think she drank 2 beers the very last day)!! I thought that was pretty cool...but, since I'm a devout Coors or Budweiser girl, I would run out of beer choices mid-way through the week! :)

So, I am on Day 17 of this personal challenge and so far, so good! I have managed to run everyday...somedays, it is all I can do to get moving and run a mile (aka "The morning after gals wine night!"). Other days, I feel as if I could run forever! My shortest run has been 1 mile and my longest run has been 4.2, averaging 2.51 a day. This sort of challenge works well for me because I know that if I stop, I will be done. So, it has become somewhat of a game with me to keep the streak going. The tricky part is geting out there early, before it gets too hot. I have been pretty good about that and so far, have only had to run in the heat of the day once! (I also set a goal for 2012 to run atleast 12 miles a week, so this keeps me on track with that goal as well.)

Turns out, I come by this "All or Nothing" attitude rather honestly. I come from a long line of "AorNAYer's". This patten is most evident in my older brother, Kevin who I believe holds the World's Record for longest consecutive jump roping!! He started jump roping on March 22, 1997 and never stopped. That is 15 plus years of jump roping, people! Every. Single. Day. When he first started, he lost 60 lbs! Now, it has become a way of life and probably somewhat of an addiction. He has jump roped under the Eifel Tower, at the Vatican; all sorts of exciting and unusual places! He even forgot his jump rope one time on vacation so, he made a makeshift one out of the phone cord!! Gotta love that kind of creative thinking!

It really is almost easier to do something everyday than it is to say you will do it 4 times a week. If you know you are going to run everyday, then there is no negotiating with yourself. You don't start making deals with yourself like, "I can take tomorrow off if I run today" or "I can push the snooze button and run extra tomorrow!" You just get up and do it. And, pretty soon, it becomes habit.

"Just Do it. And Do It Again Everyday."

Embrace your weaknesses!!

"My grace is sufficient for you, my power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9

I absolutely love this scripture. It is so comforting to me in times of trial or tribulation. Often we wonder why God allows suffering in our world and I think this verse sums it up. If it were not for tough times, we would never know how strong we are. And, let's admit it, we often don't turn to God until we are in trouble. Rick Warren, author of "The Purpose Driven Life" writes an entire chapter on God's Power in your Weakness. He says: "Your most effective ministry will come out of your deepest hurts." Other people can find healing in our wounds, just as we found salvation and redemption in Christ's suffering on the cross.

Warren goes on to say "God has never been impressed with strength or self sufficiency, in fact He is drawn to people who are weak and admit it." In the bible, this is especially evident in Paul. He said, "I am quite happy about the 'thorn' ...for when I am weak, then I am strong - the less I have, the more I depend on Him." According to Warren, "our weaknesses prevent arrogance and keep us humble." I have found this to be so true in my own life. It is often during times when things are at their worst (whether it be financially, health-wise or just facing a small crisis) that I am most content. I find that it is during these times that I focus more on what I do have and on the things that I can control. I turn to God for guidance and end up feeling truly blessed and full.

I love the idea of God using us, with all of our weakness and imperfections, to keep us humble and to bring us closer to Him. Being honest and vulnerable is also what leads to true connections with others. No one likes that person who always has a fake smile plastered on their face, acting as if nothing is ever wrong in their life. It is when we admit our weaknesses and let down our guard that God can truly begin to work in our lives and we can begin to connect with others around us in a meaningful way. I have seen this at play so many times in my own life. Friendships in which I allow myself to "go deep" and get real about life situations and feelings, take on a whole new dimension and become so much more emotionally satisfying than just an ordinary acquaintance. I can tell my true friends by how many times we have cried together!

Being weak is not a curse, it's a blessing. It is anything that causes us to stop and examine our own lives and lean on God a little more. It is anything that allows us to become more "real" and humble in our relations to other people. So, the next time you face a particularly challenging situation, remember, it is these times that God uses us the most! I can't help but find comfort in that!

(As I type this blog, my fingers are tingling and I have a strange numbing sensation in my thumbs! Just another strange and annoying reminder that I have MS! Only now, I can rejoice in these small inconveniences knowing that God is using me for a greater purpose  - and I have an excuse for any misspelled words! Ha!)

MS Doesn't mean "No Mas"!!

Recently, I have been doing my best to just forget that I have MS. Training for and running my second half marathon (last weekend) makes me feel rather "studly" and makes me feel strong and invincible! I usually don't even think about having MS until my monthly IV. And, then, I'm like "Wait a minute, Why am I sitting in this chair with a needle in my arm? Oh yeah, I have MS!" I sit there for a couple hours and then I walk out the door and go on with my life.

MS is a funny thing. I have heard it referred to as the "But you look so good" disease! Which is a blessing and a curse. It is a blessing because to the outside world, I look normal. I can walk, run, jump and do pretty much anything any of my friends can do...Okay, let's be honest, I often do MORE than any of my friends in a given day. On the other hand, though, it can be a curse because no one really knows just how much it sucks! As much as people try to empathize, unless they've been in my shoes, they just don't know. They don't know the fear that I know. The fear of uncertainty...wondering if I'll end up in a wheelchair someday, wondering if my children will get this disease, or wondering how long I will feel this good. Come to think of it, those are things we all worry about, MS or not, right?

 I consider myself very lucky because at the moment, I don't really have any glaring symptoms (thanks to my medication!) and I feel pretty normal. But, there are times that I'll be laying in bed and cannot feel my lower legs and feet. When I wake up in the morning, it is a bit hard to get my bearings. I stagger to the bathroom...a little unsteady on my feet. There are times when I forget things...mostly short-term stuff, like "why did I walk in this room?" or "what in the hell was I looking for just now?" Then, there are those times when I will be searching frantically for my expensive sunglasses, only to have someone (usually a small child) say, "Aren't those them on your head?" I truly don't know if I can blame MS for all of these mishaps or if some of it is just the natural progression of age. I imagine that it's a little of both.

I guess what I'm trying to get across is that even though I have MS, it does not dictate how I live my life. Life is uncertain for all of us. No one knows what tomorrow will bring. I don't use it as an excuse to not try new things or push myself beyond my limitations...rather, I use it as motivation to go further. I run because I know that someday, my legs may not be as strong and capable as they are today. I do crosswords everyday because I know that someday, my mind may not be as clear as it is today. I try to greet each day with excitement because I know what it's like to want to crawl back under the covers and hide from the world...when it hurts just to get out of bed. I am thankful that God has given me another day, a day that I feel good. MS has been such a gift - a reminder that life is fragile and that everything can change in the blink of an eye. A reminder that none of us is guaranteed tomorrow and we have no right to take a single moment for granted. A reminder to seize the day!

So, just for today, I am going to forget that I have MS. One day at a time, baby. One day at a time.

Taking a break from my busy day to get a stinkin'  IV! And yes, I am rockin' a pair of cowboy boots with my sundress!!