Tag: Finals

Still Reflecting

Not a day goes by that the fond memories of Lahti, Finland don’t find a conscious place in my thoughts.

Without going into too much detail today, this event has changed my life.

Not in some major, 180 or 360 degree way.  But in a multitude of subtle ways.

Uploading You Tube videos is more time consuming than you might think.  Yet each time I do, there is a distinct memory – and key learning – with each.

When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.

There is something to be said for being self-taught.  For starters, you have 24/7, 365 access to the instructor.  How cool is that?

Carpe diem, jeff noel 🙂

Lane 8 Is On a Mission

Lane 8 is on a mission.  To help raise money until a cure is found!

The initial goal I set to help raise money to find a cure was $1,000.

A minute later, it seemed like perhaps $5,000 would be a bigger and better target.  Then it seemed like $10,000 was more appropriate.  This is, after all, for a cure for our son’s disease.

Moments later, it hit me even harder, “Why not help raise $100,000”?

Suely that would be an amazing accomplishment.  Then, the little voice tugged at my attention, “Dude, this is your only son we’re talking about here”.  I upped the goal to $1,000,000.  One-million dollars!

And then, finally, the epiphany.

“How about you don’t stop raising money until the cure is found”?

Perfect.

Dream big!  Work hard.  Seize the day and get started.  jeff noel 🙂

PS. Let me put this “in plain english”, “If you don’t get off your butt and start, soon, you probably never will.

Get it?  Crystal clear?  Never!  N-E-V-E-R!

I wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

Lane 8 Story (cont.)

Lane 8 story continued from yesterday:

“Your Dad stopped talking about the pain a while back, but you do remember him thinking he might not be able to do it?  Yet he kept saying that a person only turns 50 once.

Your Dad dreamed on making it to the semi-finals, the top 24 in the world.  He even dreamed of making it into the top 20. In the entire world.

Your Dad always says, “If your goal isn’t impossible, you’re not reaching high enough”.

Deep in his heart is this desire to see you graduate from High School.  And deeper still, to see you get married and have a family of your own.

He says the odds are stacked against him, because of the family history of Heart Disease and Alzheimer’s Disease.

And he says the odds don’t mean much to a person who believes the impossible is possible.

He also believes he can help raise enough money to find a cure for your incurable disease”.

…to be continued…..

Lane 8 Back @ Gold’s Gym

Lane 8 is back at Gold’s Gym.  My son and I went to Gold’s Gym Orlando yesterday, for the first time in three weeks.

He went to play in the Kiddie Gym, a very cool perk for this world class Gold’s Gym facility.

There are a only a few people at Gold’s that knew I was heading to Finland.  So, John came up to me and asked, “How’d you do”?

It was challenging for me to answer his question.  I hesitated.  I faltered a little bit.

Why?

Because trying to explain the “results” is complex.

In the real world, I sucked.  I was about 20 places behind my goal.

In the big picture however, I was a true champion, a gold medal performance.  This is the lesson our son should take away from this experience:

“Your Dad did his very best.  For a decade, he worked desperately hard and persevered.  He never quit.

He shouldn’t have gone to Finland.  He wasn’t ready.  His injuries did not allow him to compete at his best.  And yet, despite all the invisible barriers, he went anyway, and still managed to represent Team USA, without getting hurt.

He learned a lot, gained valuable experience, and is re-committed to staying healthy and continuing on this remarkable journey”.

…..to be continued…….

Carpe diem, jeff noel  🙂

Lane 8 You Tube video features 100 year old

Alfred Prokschin is 100 years old.  Does his age stop him?  Does he make excuses?

If not today, when? If not you, who?

Carpe diem, jeff noel  🙂