“Oh, Sammy's so confused he don't know whether to scratch his watch or wind his butt.”- Dolly Parton as Truvy in Steel Magnolias.
SAME, Sammy. Same.
What a week.
I think this is what Lenin meant when he said, “There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen.”
These past 3 weeks have definitely FELT like decades.
One week ago today, I missed the deadline for this newsletter, because I was testifying before the state Senate. I waited 8 hours to speak for 5 minutes and 53 seconds.
The week before that, I was on the Capitol steps, instructing teens and young adults on identifying pepper spray versus mace and how to treat each while choking on tear gas.
The week before THAT was where it all started. As a Board Member of an organization that partners with local justice organizations, I felt I needed to pay respects at a Vigil at the Capitol. 2.5 miles there, 2.5 miles back. I didn’t even carry water with me. Which meant I wasn’t prepared when the first round of tear gas purchased and administered with my tax dollars filled my lungs.
That’s where it all started for me. For so many others, this is anything but new. That I’ve not expected this most of my life is referred to as “white privilege”.
Our brains reject anything that messes with our sense of safety, so I have no idea how to explain what’s been happening, what I have been doing, for the past three weeks. It sounds...dramatic. Fictional. Who wants to hear it, let alone believe it?
Maybe that’s why we’ve ignored the plight of so many Americans, of so many fellow runners, for so long.
Maybe, just maybe, we’ve hit a point of no return. Maybe we’re ready for actual changes, especially if those changes make us all safer.
(I don’t have the bandwidth to consider the alternative)
We all need self-care this week. Some need it more than others.
June is Pride Month, and we had hoped to kick the month off with this AMAZING and hilarious conversation with our Sponsored Athlete Kade Schult, discussing his gender transition in GREAT detail; at the same time, this timing feels exactly right. I’ve never needed an escape so badly, and for nearly 90 minutes I forgot what was going on and delighted in hearing my friend tell me that his body will change but our relationship won’t. Nothing in this world makes me feel safer than that.
Wherever you are right now, I sincerely hope you feel safe. I also hope you feel #coachedandloved.
#winningatlife is going to have to wait a week or two. Our circumstances may change, but our ability to keep moving, won’t. It’s not enough, but it’s not nothing.
The times you need a coach the most are the times you are least able to connect with one. There is no training plan for this, but you DO have a coach and a powerful team. It’s not enough, but it’s not nothing.
Cheers
Coach MK
PS: The next round of Build opens soon. Tell your friends.
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