Thursday, October 23, 2014

thankful thursday: the one with a half marathon, national parks and tons and tons of tissue

happy thankful thursday friends

at least i think its thursday
to be honest i'm not sure what day it actually is

day 8
 that's what i know
i've been sick for 8 days now
and today might be the worst of them all

i can't remember the last time i was this sick
maybe college when that H1N1 flu was going around my 4th year
that was bad
at least i'm not having to wear a mask on my face
like i did then
that was embarrassing

although
 there was this really cute guy
he was sitting in the chair next to me
at the cal poly health center
he wasn't wearing a mask
if i remember correctly he was there because he hurt his foot 
or ankle or something like that

i was what you might call frumpy that day
i hadn't brushed my hair in days
i don't think i even had the energy to shower
i was achy and fighting a 103 degree fever
and my face was white
lets just say i was not at my best

the nurse brought me from the waiting room to a hallway that had a couple chairs
she told me to take a seat and wait for the doctor
the only other person waiting there was this cute guy
and my first thoughts after the nurse told me to wait...
 "seriously god"
"you're kidding me right"
"i have to sit with this guy looking like this"
"i'm wearing a freaking mask on my face"
"of all the days to sit next to a cute guy"
then i felt really sick
and defeated and i sat down
and put my head in my hands

all of the sudden
he started talking to me
which really threw me off 
considering the state i was in
i wouldn't even want to talk to me looking the way i did
he was a 5th year engineering student
and he asked me a lot of questions about me
and we both shared a little about what brought us to the health center
eventually i brought up the mask 
how i really didn't want to wear it
but that the nurse told me i had to since i had a fever
(which i had been denying i had for like 2 days)

he looked at me and very gently told me not to worry about it
he got this little smile on his face
and said i didn't need to worry about it
because it really brought out my big, beautiful blue eyes
and his smile grew a bit bigger as his head turned forward
 i definitely smiled a little under my mask
we talked a little more

i can't remember if he got up first or if i did
but i remember 
he smiled at me and told me to get better fast
he was sweet
and i never saw him again
theres like a gazillion other students at cal poly
he probably wouldn't recognize me without a mask on anyway

i was and still am thankful for that moment
that even though i felt like crap
there was this sweet guy who gave me a kind compliment
that i still remember
5 years later
a sweet little gift from the lord in a time of discomfort

honestly i have no idea how that ties into this post
but i thought of it and now i'm rolling with it

this past week
i was really sick
but it was one of the most amazing weeks i've ever had
filled with so many sweet gifts from the lord

to sum it up

last wednesday i got sick
friday i flew to salt lake city and got more sick
saturday drove to maob got even more sick
sunday ran a half marathon and cried because i was sick
sunday and monday explored canyonlands and arches national parks
and was completely blown away with what i saw
and almost forgot about how sick i was
monday drove back to salt lake city still very sick
tuesday evening flew home to la thought i was maybe getting better
wednesday went to work 
{bad decision}
today finally gave in and had to call in sick to work

and let me tell you it was totally worth it

yes
im pretty bummed i was sick for my race
that i had trained so hard for
in no way was i close to a pr
and yes i cried when i came to the end
{slightly embarrassing}
but i ran it and finished it
and saw some of the most amazing scenery i've ever seen
plus i got to watch my good friends absolutely kill their first half marathon
{proud friend right here}

i've been reminded that there are certain things
that our way out of our control
no matter how hard we try to control them
god has purpose in all things
even if i don't see it just yet

so today im not thankful im sick
{lets be real about this}
but i am thankful that despite being sick
god gave me
 precious time with friends
and that we did and saw things that i will never ever forget

i am thankful for the abundant gifts the lord gave me 
during a period of discomfort

today i am thankful for
sweet friends
life giving conversations
the ability to run
canyonlands 


arches national park


views that i will never in this lifetime forget
delicious pasta dinners
eating jam on bread 
car ride conversations
the ability to run
medicine
coffee
these two who cared for me and loved me
so well this past week


traveling and running a half marathon 
with these 4 awesome strain's


water
gatorade
my awesome running shoes
encouraging texts from friends and family
starting line smiles
{note the chapped, red nose on the left...}


the onlookers who cheered and gave high fives
somehow making it to the top of each hill
and passing people on my way up
{i know that's not nice, but i can't lie it was encouraging}
the unbelievable views on our race route
{somewhere around mile 6 before the hills began...}


completing another half marathon
running along the colorado river
chocolate milk and beer at the end of the race
burgers and fries
drives in the mountains
fall color like i've never seen before
golden aspen trees


hot tea
hot tubs
shooting stars
tissues so many tissues
cough drops
hand sanitizer
parks and rec
pizza and once upon a time
cool weather
beautiful mountains


each of the people i traveled with
and how well they handled being around a sick person
{you guys are champs}
that so far none of them have gotten sick
{hopefully that's still accurate...}
for six years of friendship with this gem


and for many many more
for adventures that i never thought i go on
for seeing things i never thought i'd see in person
for gods unbelievable and extravagant creation
answered prayers
gods grace and mercy 
and that my strength comes from him

what are you thankful for today?....
lets hear it




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