Perspective

I am at the hospital with my wife and daughter as she recovers from spinal fusion surgery to correct severe scoliosis. She will be here for approximately five days and will be out of commission for many weeks/months. Contact sports such as soccer are out of the question for a year. It is times like these that remind me to enjoy the simple things in life. It is silly that it takes something like this to find that perspective.

While my daughter loves soccer, she found much confidence during her first season of track last spring. She ran the 1600 meters and was bound and determined to break 6 minutes by the end of her 8th grade year. She pulled it off during her last meet with an inspiring last 200 meters in the league championships. The pain etched in her face told met that she found out how to run through the pain when the going got tough.

As I look at her now recovering, I know that her short time as a distance runner will help her recovery period. Distance runners constantly push the limits and learn how to push through rough patches. I am glad she has proven to herself that she can withstand pain and on the other side of pain is comfort.

I am looking forward to taking a run with her this spring/summer as she recovers and I will be sure to enjoy the simple things.