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| Random Coffee Cup |
Usually, I have something. A camping trip. A vacation. A conference. A family gathering. Some kind of adventure that gives me an obvious topic.
This week, I wasn't coming up with much.
Then it occurred to me that maybe the fact I don't have a major story to tell is the story.
The truth is, life right now is in one of those in-between seasons.
Leadership Greater Topeka (LGT) is behind me. Summer is flying by. The fall semester at Washburn is still a few weeks away. There are no camping trips on the calendar this weekend and no vacations immediately around the corner. Most days have settled into a routine, and things have been relatively quiet.
And maybe that's not a bad thing.
For a long time, I thought the most memorable parts of life were the big moments. The trips. The celebrations. The milestones. The things that show up in photos, blog posts, and social media memories years later.
As I've gotten older, I've realized that most of life isn't lived in those moments.
Most of life happens in the ordinary days between them.
It happens during a quiet evening at home with Carrie. It happens while watching a Royals game, catching up with friends, attending meetings, working on projects, or sitting outside on a warm summer evening. It happens in simple conversations and everyday routines that seem unremarkable in the moment.
Those moments rarely feel important while they're happening, but looking back, they often become the things we remember most.
The past few months have certainly included their share of significant moments. Finishing LGT was a highlight. Celebrating Oliver's 15th birthday was a moment I will always treasure. Then, just a week later, saying goodbye to him was one of the hardest things Carrie and I have experienced in a long time.
In many ways, this summer feels divided into a "before" and "after."
The house is quieter now.
It's funny how many little things remind me that Oliver isn't here anymore. Sometimes it's looking over at one of his favorite spots. Sometimes it's expecting to hear his nails on the floor. Those are the moments that catch me off guard.
At the same time, life keeps moving forward.
One thing I'm happy about is that I've managed to get back into running. Earlier this summer, I wrote about wanting to restart the routine. Over the past three weeks, I've actually been doing it.
I'll be honest, it has not been perfect.
The weather hasn't exactly been ideal either. July in Kansas is not known for cool temperatures. Most of my runs have been after work when the heat is still an issue. I feel pretty good when I get a run in, especially on those evenings when it would have been easy to come home and skip it altogether.
But I've stayed consistent.
For me, that's what matters.
I'm not training for a race. I'm not chasing a personal record. I'm simply trying to rebuild a healthy habit that had slipped away.
I've found that getting back into running is a lot like getting back into anything worthwhile. The hardest part is often just starting. Once the shoes are on and I'm moving, I almost never regret it.
| Our Neighborhood with a Drone |
Three weeks isn't much, but it's a start. Right now, I'm more focused on getting out there consistently than I am about how fast I'm running or how far I'm going. A lot of goals are achieved the same way. Not through one grand effort, but through showing up over and over again.
Maybe that's another lesson from this season of life.
Not every week needs to be exciting.
Not every month needs a major accomplishment.
Not every blog post needs a big story.
Sometimes success looks like getting through a normal work week. Sometimes it's making time for a run. Sometimes it's spending a quiet evening with the people you care about. Sometimes it's checking in with friends. Sometimes it's simply appreciating where you are instead of always focusing on what's next.
I think social media can sometimes make us forget that. We see vacations, celebrations, achievements, and milestones. We see the highlights. What we don't often see are the ordinary Tuesdays and quiet evenings that make up most of our lives.
Yet those ordinary moments are where most of us actually live.
Maybe that's why I've been thinking about them lately.
I spent much of the first half of the year looking forward to events. LGT activities. Conferences. Trips. Summer plans. Through it all, Oliver was still here, even as his health challenges increased.
Now those events have mostly passed, summer is moving quickly, and life has settled into a quieter rhythm. I'm finding that there is something comforting about that.
There is comfort in routine.
There is comfort in familiar faces.
There is comfort in a neighborhood run, a conversation with Carrie, dinner on the patio, or a Royals game on television.
Those things may not seem remarkable, but they're the pieces of life that often matter most.
Don't get me wrong, I'm excited about the months ahead. Football season is around the corner. Cooler weather will be here before we know it. Hopefully there will be a few camping trips, family gatherings, and adventures to write about before the end of the year.
But for now, life is pretty ordinary.
And honestly, that's okay.
The older I get, the more I realize a quiet week is not something to complain about. There is value in routine. There is value in a normal Saturday. There is value in having an evening where nothing special is planned and nowhere you need to be.
Those ordinary days may not make the highlight reel, but they make up the majority of our lives.
Maybe that's why it's important to appreciate them while we're living them.
So this week, instead of writing about a grand adventure or a major milestone, I ended up writing about the fact that I didn't have anything big to write about at all.
And maybe that's the point.
And as it turns out, the in-between might be worth appreciating just as much as the big moments.
That's all for now. I hope you have a great weekend and a wonderful week ahead.