the flame

If there is one thing that I hope you take away from this, it is that I have provided you with an opportunity to live outside your comfort zone...to try new foods...to hear different music...to have experiences you never would have had...to view things from the eyes of a day dreamer, an adventurer, a carefree soul. 

I know your struggle...the push and the pull...wanting to break free, yet longing for the comforts of home...yearning for new discoveries, yet fearing failure.

I have seen the fight in you. I have seen your bold spirit and I know it exists. Within you there is a flame...all I ask is that you promise me you won’t ever let it die. 

Never Let Fear Win

I was having a conversation with a friend last week. We talked about fear, of being afraid...whether it's fear of dying, fear of being alone, fear of failure or something else, sometimes the things we are afraid of impact the decisions we make, the way we live our lives. 

It's restrictive. We place boundaries on ourselves because of it...and then there were the events in Boston this week which invoked feelings of fear in so many people. 

In all honesty, you're never completely safe, but if we allowed that thought to pervade we'd never get anywhere.

Our talk made me think a little bit about my own fears. I was driving to Pitman the other day when four words popped into my head "never let fear win." Last season I had a mental melt down at the Giro Del Cielo Criterium. I pulled myself from the race and vowed to never enter another criterium. I was scared.

If you quit because you are afraid then fear wins. Never let fear win.

My first race of the 2013 road season is tomorrow. It is the Daniel Harwi Memorial 26th Annual Lower Providence Spring Classic Criterium. Check back for a race report!