In my last post, I wrote about how I needed an Epiphany—something unexpected to give me an emotional lift and drive to enjoy things a little more. I GOT IT IN THE STRANGEST WAY YESTERDAY.
I was getting a rack and saddlebags on my bike at Eric's Bike shop. Standing there waiting, I looked to my right and thought, "I know her," but I had no idea who she was. Another 20 seconds go by, I stared at her again. She was looking at nice road bikes. I knew her, but why and from where? I have had some memory issues since my concussion last summer, but I was never so sure. Another minute goes by, and I look at her again. I just could not place her anywhere in my life.
Then I looked more to my right, and without hesitation, I exclaimed, "O'Neal." He smiled and said "yes". It was O'Neal Hampton from The Biggest Loser, and that girl was Sunshine. They are in the middle of the home part of the show. They have been home for about 12 weeks and have about 4 weeks to go? She looked so GREAT I did not really know it was her! He has done so well, but she was hard to recognize. Her face showed the cheekbones, not in a bad way, but she really had her best features shining through!
We were not allowed to talk about the show, but I spoke to O'Neal for about 15 minutes about various topics. If Sunshine loves running, she joins MNDRS and meets for organized trail runs. I told her about my ultra idol Julie, her love of the show, and how she would run any pace with her just to talk about her experience. I also told her that veteran trail runners are not overly concerned with pace on every run. We know camaraderie and the joy of getting out on the trails, and we hoped she would not feel like she was too slow (or too fast) as it was the joy of the run that counted. Afterward, I felt bad for not suggesting UMTR. Sunshine, if you read this, also check out UTMR.
I came away with the idea that O'Neal is more genuine and real than a person on the show. Really impressed me! To see how far these two have come and then to take the time to speak with me like a friend. WOW. I can not say enough about the positive impact it had on me. I have watched O'Neal with his knees lose so much weight, and I bitch about my weight and really do not feel that bad physically. As a result, I ran 3.3 miles in 35 minutes, biked 28 miles, and lifted weights today. According to the computer program, I had a negative daily calorie intake and felt great.
ATTITUDE... That is the difference. The desired epiphany, it is here. I do not know how long it will last, but I will ride this as long as I can! Nothing like a great Epiphany...
Carry on...
7 comments:
Londell's back! Yay!
Well, you asked for an epiphany and you certainly got one. That's so cool that you ran into them and they were so nice and inspiring. Very exciting!
Londell,
I believe one of the great gifts one can give is the gift of being inspired.
It sounds a little backwards, but if one is inspired by something I do, it gives me a ton of motivation for a long time.
Many times it is not the race which is rewarding, it is the journey to get there.
Did that make any sense?
Matt, I fully understand and makes sense to me. Thanks for sharing.
Oh my gosh, Londell, thanks for telling me so! Wow. I wonder what I would have done had I run into Sunshine and O'Neal. I probably would have embarassed myself. Wow. Cool. Real. Cool.
OK, the 310XT. I am trying to download the software and am not succeeding. I HATE TECHY STUFF. I keep getting the error "device not supported" well hello there is no device shoved into my usb port so what exactly is not supported. Gah. Support is closed til Monday. Grr.
Wow that is great that you got to meet Sunshine and O'Neal! Glad to hear they provided you your epiphany. Awesome job on the running and biking, too!
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