The Gift

I think it's easy to go through life day in and day out and forget about how lucky we really are. I'm lucky to live in a country where I can create an incredible life for myself and my family, lucky to have a family who loves me, and lucky to be healthy and happy. I feel truly blessed to have a partner like Amber who understands me and I feel like we have a great marriage. This life really is a "gift" and it reminds me of a quote by one of the greatest runners in American history, Steve Prefontaine. He said, "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the "Gift." Of course he was talking about his incredible talent on the track but the quote applies to everyone.

All of us have been given a gift and all of us make a decision everyday to develop that gift or sacrifice it. People who see others accomplish incredible things rarely understand the time and effort devoted to those accomplishments. The focus and determination required from those we admire is hidden behind closed doors and is rarely understood. To me the accomplishment is secondary to the mental toughness these people possess. Steve Prefontaine broke every American record in distances between 2000 and 10,000 meters and he lived a very hand-to-mouth existence. He was a world class athlete who lived in a trailer and never made a lot of money but he loved running and he did it to his very best every race he entered. Tragically he died in a car accident at the young age of 24. I can't imagine how far he could have gone had he lived to realize his incredible potential and it reminds me that the gift we are all given is another day on this earth. He was the Lance Armstrong of American running but unfortunately he was never able to realize his 7 Tour victories. So remember to appreciate every day you are here and truly live your life like it is a Gift.