Character does still matter

Don’t mistake my assertions that Lance Armstrong’s cheating doesn’t change anything for a belief that cheating is okay. Believing that it’s not helpful to go back and try to rewrite the past isn’t the same as accepting poor conduct or character.

Character is doing the right thing, even when doing it puts you in a bad position. It’s about doing what’s right, not what’s easy. It’s a quality that we don’t push our kids to master in this day and age. The focus is on winning, not on sportsmanship, honoring others, or doing something for another.

In a world that’s values winning above all, stories like Iván Fernández Anaya, stand out. On December 2nd, 2012, Fernández Anaya was competing in a race in Navarre. The race leader misjudged the finish, slowed down dramatically and Fernández Anaya quickly caught up. Most athletes would have considered this fair game. The race leader lost focus, and as a result he was going to lose the race. That’s not what happened.

Fernández Anaya didn’t take the easy victory. He slowed up, and allowed his opponent to finish first. He did the honorable thing, and for that he’s going to be long remembered.

Do you push your kids to win at all costs? Or do you tell them to do the right thing, even if it means losing some times? Do you make a point of matching up your words and actions?

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Fall

Tags

clara k.showalter, how will you live your life, inspire, life, motivation

You will never say that you should have spent an extra hour at work. You’ll never say you should have spent less time with the people you love. You’ll never regret time given freely to others.

Life is to be lived. Enjoy the ride.

2012 Goals

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2012, clara k.showalter, denver, fitness, goals, ireland, life, red rocks, travel

So the new year is rocking and rolling along. I’ve got good traffic going to my fitness business at In Your Space Fitness. My fostering blog is also rocking along. I’ve gotten asked what all I am aiming to do for the new year. Like anyone I’ve got a couple things I’d like to tackle.

1) Master the pistol squat. This is a move that combines excellent strength AND balance. It’s a tough one.

2) Run the stairs at Red Rocks in Denver, Colorado. These legendary stairs test you because of the altitude. It’s on the “stairs” list.

3) Travel internationally. Cause really, who doesn’t like to travel?

These are just some of the things I’m aiming at this year. How about you?

John-Alex Mason went to the crossroads

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blues, clara k.showalter, colorado springs school, crossroads, death, john mason, john-alex mason, life, music, robert johnson

I had a dream last night. In it, a tall man with twinkling blue eyes and a shock of white blond hair walked towards the Gates of Heaven. Saint Peter opened the gates to usher the newcomer in. The man just smiled, waved politely and kept walking.

This was a good man, so Saint Peter was naturally confused. Why would a good man walk past the Gates? Peter’s curiosity was piqued, so he walked out the Gates and followed the man. The citizens of Heaven were also curious and followed Saint Peter.

As the man walked on, he strolled past the descent to Hell. The Devil was naturally very confused. This man didn’t belong anywhere near his domain. The Devil peeked his head out as the man strolled by without a second glance. The Devil saw Peter coming down the road and raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry. Peter just shrugged and kept walking. The Devil couldn’t let Peter solve the mystery first, so he dropped into line behind the citizens of Heaven, and the denizens of Hell followed.

A little further down the road a dilapidated juke-joint sat at a crossroad. The sign was faded and unreadable. Inside you could hear the clicking of bottles and quiet laughter. The tall man sped up as he saw the building. Reaching for the door, he pulled it open and walked in, making his way to a chair where a cigar box guitar waited. Next to that chair waited a lanky black man, idly picking out a tune on his guitar.

The tall blond man stuck out his hand. “John-Alex Mason”.

The lanky black man reached out and shook the offered hand. “Robert Johnson.”

Both sat down and Robert started picking out a tune. John-Alex quickly matched him note for note. The citizens of Heaven and Hell sat spellbound while John-Alex Mason and Robert Johnson met at the crossroads and played the blues.

—

In every mental image I have of John-Alex, his big blue eyes, white blond hair, and big smile take center stage. For many, his music defines John-Alex. His music will be his legacy for many. For John-Alex, the legacy that matters will always be his children. He’s left us too soon, and they will never get to know all the elements of their amazing father. For them, I leave the legendary Skunk Joke.

When we were in Middle School at The Colorado Springs School, there was a daily morning meeting to go over things that might be important for the day. Somewhere along the way, John-Alex started telling the Skunk Joke.

Once upon a time there was a Mamma Skunk, a Papa Skunk, and a Baby Skunk.

Mamma Skunk said, “My instincts tell me it’s going to rain.”

Papa Skunk said, “My instincts tell me it’s going to snow.”

The itty-bitty Baby Skunk said, “My in stinks too, but it doesn’t tell me anything.”

Now this was Middle School, so of course it was funny. John-Alex wasn’t content with telling the joke once. He told it again, and again, and again. The joke quickly became the process of John-Alex telling the joke. Week in and week out, sometime during morning meeting, John-Alex would raise his hand and would start his delivery.

Every time he had a huge smile on his face as we all joined in to deliver the joke with him.

Twenty plus years later and I still laugh when I think about that joke. That was John-Alex. Always looking to make people smile, always looking for ways to make the day better. For many his music will continue to fill that void. For me, it’s always going to be the Skunk Joke.

Some days you gotta agree with Calvin. Miss you John-Alex.

Star Spangled Banner

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1991, clara k.showalter, clara showalter, july 4, star spangled banner, super bowl, whiteney houston

I freely confess that I’m one of those people who cries when I hear the American National Anthem.

Star Spangled Banner is a tough song. I’ve listened to a bunch of badly butchered versions. Without a doubt, the best version ever is Whitney Houston during the 1991 Super Bowl. I’d just turned 16 and we were in the middle of the first Gulf War.

Houston doesn’t over sing the song or try to own it. She’s confident, she believes in herself, and she works with the song. My favorite version and embodies everything I feel about America. Hope, promise, and just a little bit of attitude.

Happy Independence Day!

What gives Body-for-Life a heartbeat?

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body for life, mindset

It will become obvious to you that there are people in the BFL family so invested in helping others for no personal gain–that this is what actually gives Body-for-Life a heartbeat. — Rena Reese

I love this quote. I came across it today via Body-for-Life Grand Champion Rena Reese. There’s beauty and power in those words.

It’s the people which give Body-for-Life a heartbeat. It’s not about the person on the cover of the book. It’s about the people who’ve learned how to live via the lessons you find between the covers. It’s about the people who learn how to reach past their own pain, and through that step up to help the next person in line.

How do you change the world? You change it one person at a time.

Purpose

Tags

evolution, writing

So after several years of playing around on multiple blogging platforms I concluded it’s time to make some decisions. I’ve broken down most of my interests over several different blogs. That makes it too hard for people to follow my info. It also makes it hard for me to produce multiple lines of radically different content. So I’ve started moving all my content over to this location. Eventually all my older post will be visible.  The one exception will by my cat fostering blog.

So here I’ll cover what interests me on that day, in that moment. Food, nutrition, fitness, world events, and just general observations on life. I’ll also link up my various writing assignments from other locations as my portfolio evolves.

Life is all about evolution. If you just stand there, you miss out on the best parts.

Better Days II

Tags

football, future, hope, hurricane, inspire, katrina, motivate, new orleans saints, possibility, rebirth

Better Days II-

In 2005 New Orleans and the Gulf Coast was devistated when Hurricane Katrina hit the area. None of us can forget the horrible images from that storm. The impact was magnified when it became apparent that we could not get help to people in a rapid manner. For days, people suffered as public services struggled to return some sense of normalcy to New Orleans.

On January 12, 2010, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake leveled the city of Port-au-Prince, Hati. Again we have images of complete devastation, loss on a scale to horrible to contemplate. In many ways the images mirror what we saw after Hurricane Katrina.

On Saturday, January 16, 2010 an American football game is being played. On first glance it’s nothing really remarkable. It’s a game, and not really significant when you look at the horrors in Hati. But take another look. This game is between the Arizona Cardinals and the New Orleans Saints.

It’s easy to forget now with time and distance just how bad things were in New Orleans. The Superdome had been turned into an emergency shelter. It became a symbol for the chaos and despair after the storm. People trapped, unable to get basic services, living in conditions unimaginable in America. The battered dome was a symbol for a destroyed city. There was talk of the Saints relocating to San Antonio, Texas on a permanent basis. There was talk that New Orleans would never be able to recover, that the city would fade into obscurity and literally be wiped off the map.

A determined group of New Orleans leaders refused to let that happen. They pushed, lobbied, and fought. A little over a year later, the New Orleans Saints returned to the city of New Orleans.

I wrote the following that night, watching Monday Night Football.

“So take these words
And sing out loud
Cuz everyone is forgiven now
Cuz tonight’s the night the world begins again”

–“Better Days” The GooGooDolls

Tonight football returns to the city of New Orleans. It’s been over a year since the world stopped spinning for folks there and on the Gulf Coast. For the people of New Orleans the return of Monday Night Football is a graphic demonstration that even with all the work still surrounding them- there’s progress.

The Superdome was a scene of horror a year ago. Dark, dank, overflowing toilets, people who had gone there as a last resort trapped in a modern day Inferno. People died in horrible ways in the dark of the Superdome. The pictures we all saw can’t begin to capture the terror those trapped felt. The smells, the sounds, those will be with those folks for a lifetime. Imagine seeing everything you owned washed away. Imagine leaving family, pets, friends behind thinking they would be safe only to return and find them gone. Lives were truly ended the day Katrina hit.

From day 1, there was a push to get the Saints back into the city. The key question was- can the Superdome be saved? Can this building that’s dominated the skyline of the city be saved. Can the soul of a city be saved? The interior of the Dome was considered a hazmat site post Katrina. They found blood in random places in the dome for months after. A dedicated team of architects, builders, day laborers, and ordinary citizens decided to make the impossible happen. It takes years to build a stadium. This team had one year to rebuild a dream. They worked around the clock, gutted the building and did something amazing. This scene of horror and hopelessness has been rebuilt. The people of New Orleans today can gather around their televisions, tailgate, and reconnect with old friends. They can show the rest of America that while they are down, the city is far from dead.

Tonight the world begins again. Tonight the New Orleans Saints come marching home.”

It’s been 4 years since that night. The New Orleans Saints have continued to lead the community in recovery. This day, they look for a chance to bring a Super Bowl appearance to a still healing city. It seemed at the time that life in New Orleans would never again be normal. It won’t be. It can be better. That’s one of the lessons sports shows us.

Haiti faces a long and difficult recovery. The obstacles are greater, the poverty deeper, the odds against them higher. Yet history shows us that nothing is impossible. With hope, faith, and a heck of a lot of hard work the impossible can become reality.

Go Saints, Go New Orleans, Go Haiti.