Finding joy in the present

Today (8/19/16) the Manitou Colorado Inclines closes until December for repairs. This is an iconic hike done by hundreds of people each day. http://www.visitcos.com/manitou-incline-near-colorado-springs-colorado

As this closing approached, my buddy Brad and I decided to hike it one last time a day earlier to try to set Personal Records. Brad (14 years younger) waited for me at the top as his time came in under 38 minutes and I arrived at 49:04.4; with us both setting new Personal Records.

Throughout the rest of that day, I kept looking at my time from the hike knowing that only 4.4 seconds faster and I would have been under 49 minutes. This got me thinking about all the Olympians who train full time for years and lose races/medals by 100^th of seconds, which gets me to the point of realizing that everyday has a present, a future, and a past; all there to enjoy in the moments of the journey.

While I might have saved a few seconds by not taking the picture of the sunrise, I would have missed the beauty of a sunrise starting a new day; reminding me that there is joy to be found in the moments during our days. Be it working in an office, getting a pounding heart rate on the incline, taking kids to school, etc: there is joy to be found in the present of each day.

Heading back up the trail, I press on to the future with the high calling of the top and run the race before me (figuratively speaking because no one really runs up the incline). Here I need to run the race set before me.  Not Brad’s or any of the other 100s of people who do the incline each day.  I need to focus on getting to the top with the God given strengths and skills given me.  I’m not to get caught up comparing myself to others who do the incline faster or slower than me.  That why they call it a Personal Best!

And once to the top at the end of the climb (day), we need to stop to reflect on the past – the trail we just ran – taking in the beauty of the day, rejoicing and celebrating, in the strength we have been given to complete the task at hand. This is where I know I fail the most as I’m always looking at the next thing that needs to be done.

As your day draws to an end, I encourage you to pause and: reflect on the joys of the present, the future with what lies ahead tomorrow, and celebrate the journey of the day that is now in the past.