How was everyone's weekend? I hope all went well for each of you. I need to give a shout out to the Akron Men's Rugby Team and especially to Big Tree Fitness members, Coach Dom, Ben Ott and Dave Kauffman. Akron Men's Rugby beat Bremer County 40 to 17 in the Division III Championship this past weekend. Well played gentlemen.

So a weird and wonderful thing happened today while out trail hiking today. Yes I said hiking. I recently decided that it was time for me to give my body a break away from working out, so I am taking this week and heading off into the woods to do a "Hard Reset" both physically and mentally. This hard reset is meant to let my body heal and give me time to reflect on this past year and a half. I recently stopped and thought about how since Mothers Day 2020 I have taken somewhere between 8 to 10 days off from working out out of 556 days. Obviously that formula can only go on for so long until stuff starts to break down.

When I left the gym for this hike I was still debating with myself where to hike. I was almost as if I was arguing with myself internally. It was kind of stupid to be honest. I finally decided to go hike my original thought which was the Perkins Loop in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. I love running and hiking this trail because very few people ever go past the Covered Bridge and even fewer this time of year. Plus there are also quite a bit of fond memories with my family at the Covered Bridge. For those who have hiked the Perkins Trail you know the first section of the trail takes you straight up to a ridge line plateau and the trail skirts right along the ridgeline. It is a beautiful view back down into the valley below. A short time after reaching the top and hiking along the trail, I thought I heard voices. It was hard to tell because of the wind blowing through the tops of the tree's, but soon enough I heard voices again. I end up coming upon a couple hiking in the opposite direction. I startled them slightly and so I apologized for not speaking up sooner. I told them I normally don't see people hiking up here and they said the same in return. We all had a little laugh, siad have a great day and continued on our hikes. I didn't get more than 10 yards down the path before I heard the lady yell out "Big Tree Fitness". I turned around smiling and said yes. The lady looked at me and said "I used to cut your mom's hair. I still wear the heart necklace she gave me before she passed away" pulling the necklace out to show. I looked at her and paused for a moment and siad "Thank you for sharing that with me, that was awesome". My mom passed away back in May of 2019.

Daily life can be full of surprises. Sometimes when we get caught up in our own head space that we can miss out on truly something amazing. I was so determined to pick the right trail to start my "Hard Reset" that I was getting to the point of paralysis through analysis. When all was said and done I went back and followed my first thought and it led to something beautiful. It led to this story that I get to share with you. It led to a great story that I can share with my family on Thanksgiving. I just finished the book "The Joy of Movement" today and if it wasn't for my own joy of movement and my own joy of finding that movement in the woods, today's surprise would have gone unfulfilled. Keep your eyes up, your ears open, your mind clear, your heart willing to accept so that great and amazing things happen for you.

As always your thoughts and comments are welcome.