Today I said another goodbye

A place I found when Krista was 9 months pregnant, a place where I saw a dream become a reality, a place where a community grew, a place where culture took root, and a place I could call my own.

It didn’t just start two years ago, it goes back farther than that, it goes back to a conversation with a friend in a limo, “I could open up my own gym,” I said jokingly and fast forward to now, but I always knew the place I could call my own would always be MORE than just a gym.

It would be a home.

It would be a place where people who wanted to feel better about themselves could gather and not be judged based on who they were or the actions they had made. It was a place where people could go who wanted to focus on the future, who wanted to learn from their decision, who wanted more from life, and for those who wanted to be better somehow.

As I stood staring in to an empty facility I couldn’t help but feel like it was my last day in high school. I could hear all of the laughs, see all of victories, and remember every story of every person that ever set foot through this garage door. As much as I can remember the good times I can also remember the hard times, the frustrations, and even the let downs, but ultimately in life, in order to know more you have to be willing to grow more.

2 years, 24 Months, 730 days… However you want to put it I remember everything.

Looking back at every decision I made, every weight I lifted, every word I said, and to even every stroke of paint I made I can say I would do it all over again to get to where I am now.

People always say hindsight is 20/20 and its true, but I like to think back and look at everything from 360 degrees. I like standing in the center of it all and just looking around, sure I could have questioned myself and maybe done things differently, but I never wanted to live my life by what-ifs.

So whats my view point now? What’s the point of all this?

1. Trust the process – Whatever you’re going through, no matter how hard and how frustrating things may seem you have to trust YOUR gut
2. Believe – Believe in yourself, believe in what you are doing. If your goal is to lose weight then believe it; you will, if your goal is to earn a masters degree then believe it; you will, and don’t think for a second you have to justify your goal to anyone. Your goals are YOUR goals.
3. Leave the Roads, but Keep the Compass – You can follow every road, every route, and still manage to get lost along the way. You can take detour after detour or listen to “ways” to find alternate routes, but your destination will always be the same and your compass will lead to your goal EVENTUALLY.
4. Make Moments into Memories – Every chance you can you have the ability to turn a moment into a memory, it’s like the first song you heard when you fell in love, or what you felt when you had a great loss. How do you want to be remembered? or how do you want to remember for that matter? Do you want to look back and say I did everything I can or look back and say I gave it my all.
5. When one door closes, another opens – Every action has an equal or opposite reaction, so if one thing walks out of your life another is bound to come in when you need it most.
6. We the People – Sometimes its not even about the physical space you are in, but the people that you share it with. The people who will be there for you to lift you up and the ones that will make you laugh. It’s the relationships you build and the bonds that you create that make things go by just a little bit easier and seem a bit more tolerable.

I have so many amazing memories from 431 Deep Run Rd., but I know I will only have even more at 5776 Easton Rd., because of the people.

Because of my friends.

Because of my family

Because I believe

Because I trust the process

Because I have a compass

And although 2018 felt like I was stuck in a cyclone I realized that every storm has to have a center. I know that every struggle has to have an end and every battle has to have a victor. I was battered and I was bruised, but I came out stronger than ever and I know where I need to head to for the next year.

So thank you 2018 for kicking me while I was down because I got back up and i’m ready for more.