My Riffs

What is life’s equivalent to steps on a staircase? It’s challenges. Challenges take us up higher, making us stronger and giving us a better view point. It’s not easy, it requires strength and courage but when you look back you’ll be grateful for the challenges. 

It’s hard to appreciate anything if you’re going full speed.  Things are moving faster and faster. We rarely take time to appreciate our surroundings, nature, quality and detail and most importantly people. Our devices pull us from reality into dopamine hits.  It takes intentional slowing down to appreciate what we have and experience. 

Create the best home base possible. Let it be your place to recharge. Let it be a place of respite.  If your home base isn’t a place of peace and safety, you really have nowhere to go.  Make your home a place that can allow you to meet the world at top strength. 

Today we ran a 76 mile relay race.  It reminded me that the race isn’t just for the swift, but it’s for those who ensure to the end. Fast doesn’t always get you to the end. But people with endurance get to the end. 

A new beginning always had to follow an end.  Ends aren’t fun usually. But they birth beginning.  It’s part of the natural cycle of life. Feel the end but lean into the new beginning. That’s where the energy needs to go. 

Embrace the hard and life will be easier.  Embrace the easy and life will be harder.  

Your best varies from day to day. It even varies season to season. But what matters is that you always give your best. And when you don’t, you get back to giving your best right away. 

It’s a simple thing, but it does so much. Get outside, get a little sunshine. Go for a little walk. Simple and highly effective. 

Don’t waste any life by not living.  Live life. Life will be what you make it.  Drive, don’t be a passenger. 

Embrace life. Both the ups and downs. Cause they’re both equally a part of life. If you’ve got a fighting chance, you’re alive. And that alone is good.  Embrace all parts of life. The easy but also the difficult. There’s something good in both. Or something to come of both.  Embrace life!

Make the most of daylight.  In 24 hours you only get so much day light.  In your lifespan, you only get so much daylight.  Don’t waste a moment of it.  Let there be purpose in your action. In rest, in leisure let there be purpose. In work and relationships, find purpose.  Daylight only lasts so long. 

If you want to experience more you have to get out.  Get out of your ruts. Get out of your limits. Take a detour from your mundane routines. Routines are good. But it’s also good to enhance them with some changes or experiences like a trip or different way or doing your routine.  Get out there, there’s lots to learn and explore. 

Hang on, it will pass.  Not every season in life is easy and desirable.  But hang on it will pass.  Today had a few storms blow through. It got dark, rainy and there was thunder, lightening and potential of tornados. But it passed. The evening was sunny and clear.  A good metaphor for life. It gets rough at times, but look ahead cause there will be sunshine again. 

Quality of life is directly proportional to quality of relationships.  Money isn’t proportional. Fame isn’t proportional. Possessions aren’t proportional.  Only relationships are. 

We only have right here right now. But that doesn’t mean we live only for the here and now.  We live for the future.  We live to make things better for tomorrow. For our children.  Living in anxiety about tomorrow is a waste of energy.  But living in the present to prepare for a better tomorrow if the best way. 

At some point in life you’ll be faced with the decision to get bitter or get better. You can’t get better when you’re bitter. And you won’t be bitter when you get better.  Life will get hard and be unfair at some point (or points).  You will have to decide if you’ll use that to get better or worse. 

I’m leaving a trail behind me.  So are you.  Are we leaving a trail of casualties or are we leaving a trail of beneficiaries? 

Life will be what you make it.  It doesn’t mean it’s easy or things are fair. But it will be what you make it.  You can’t change what happens to you. But it will be what you make it. 

Some days are just special. It's good to slow down and acknowledge those days. There's enough negativity and bad news. When there's something good to celebrate, go all in!

I’ve wasted way too many days.  I’ve lived too long as if I have unlimited time.  Let’s live like time is short. Let’s do the things we should do knowing time is short. That will be a better guide as to what’s important and necessary.