1 millimeter to Center - A run with a purpose

Today my inner voice told me to go somewhere new. This is where I found myself;  Larry and Penny Thompson Memorial Park. The thing is...it's not "really" a new route. 

A run down memory lane.

You see, in 2009 I completed my very first Half Ironman right here. Why did I end up at Penny Park? I wasn't sure but I knew that fate had dealt me this card and here is where I was supposed to run.

The sign says NO SWIMMING....hmmm

The first place I came across was the crystal clear lake. This is the first leg of the Miami Man Half Ironman.  As I stopped to snap this image, the memories flooded my mind.I could hear the sound of the gun going off sending my age group to the two loop swim. I heard my inner voice say; left, right, left, right, breath, left, right, left right, breath...glide, kick, sight. In my memory's mind, I could see hundreds of arms flopping all around me; someone kicking me in the face because I didn't pay attention; others grabbing one of my ankles just to pull me down into the depths of the lake; my head then popping out of the water to grasp air. I literally felt my blood pressure soar as I remembered my fear and excitement of a time gone by.

Run in the lake...priceless

Off I went to continue my run. Before I knew it I found myself just half way around the lake. This time the memory was filled with joy and excitement.  Three years ago I did my very first Merrell Down and Dirty Mud Race. It was a birthday celebration with a sister from another mother. What fun! Who would have known that Mud+Obstacles+Run = FUN! I was hooked. I have done this race every year since. And each time I can say I have had a blast. The 10K course takes us right into this lake. I saw myself stopping, dipping full body and floating along side the drop till the life guard yells MOVE IT! I left this scene with a smile on my face and song on my feet. 

Open field of days gone by.

I continued along the lakes edge till I stopped to snap this picture. This is the "transition" spot for Miami Man. Again the memories flooded; 3 am wake up call, 4:30 am transition opens I can hear the generators running flooding the field with lights. I can see the athletes pumping air into their tires, checking to make sure they do not have a flat. I can smell the excitement in the air as we set up our bikes and run gear.

5 am run to the bathroom. 5:15 run to bathroom. 5:30 run to bathroom...nervous stomach I just stay near the bathrooms for awhile. 6:30 am still dark and nerves are running wild. 7:15 swim call. I can feel the fear of the impending swim. OH LORD! Hear my prayer. Let me survive the swim. 

Off I went to continue my run down memory lane.

Running to the finish line.

I quickly turned around and traveled back up the lake till I reached the paved entrance to the Miami Man running path. It twists and turns along the pine tree till you get into the mango grove. This is where the Campground begins and the run begins to wind down. So, off I went and ran into the campground till I found the exit that takes the racers from the Zoo grounds back into the park. I remembered how hot the run was and how I used to think this part of the race was my favorite. Amazing how I never noticed all the details of the mango grove and the beautiful swimming pool just past the gates entrance. 

Time was ticking and I looked at my watch; 3.1 miles done - 3.1 miles left to go. What to do? Do I go back the same way I came? 

As I approached the campground gates it dawned on me that I have NEVER ran the entire park. It's always been the same path, the same scenery, the same old same old. What if I shifted my step by one millimeter? Where would I go? What would I see?

So instead of making a sharp right hand turn back through the mango grove I kept moving forward. Before I knew it I was running a NEW path.

1 millimeter is all it takes

Allow me stop my story and explain the 1 millimeter philosophy. Motivational speaker and Life Coach, Tony Robbins talks about what we really seek in life is completely available to us when we make just one tiny adjustment in our life. 

In his speeches, he references an experience while taking a golf lesson where his instructor introduced him to the idea of making small adjustments: One Millimeter Off From the Results of Your Dream (video worth watching)

“What a great belief system that when all hell is breaking loose and nothing is working that you are only one millimeter off. Because, most people think it is impossible and so they give up.”

1 millimeter shift takes me to an unexpected aha moment

So I began my incantation along my 1 millimeter path.

"I am not my past nor my future...my past holds nothing for me and my future holds nothing I am certain off. I am present."

I ran till I saw a fork in the road. Again, I am left to make a decision? Which one to take? Where does it go? What will I find?

All roads lead to...

It didn't matter really, as I soon came to understand.  No matter which path I take, where I might travel, what I may learn, there is only one truth. All roads lead to the same destination...my center. 

Living mindfully is just a millimeter away.