Running Motivation and Writing Therapy for Those Ready to Heal from Trauma, Banish Negativity and Achieve Greatness on Their Own Terms
I choose…
To live by my standards, not society’s.
To live by choice… not by chance.
To be motivated… not manipulated.
To be useful… not used.
To make changes, not excuses.
To excel for myself… not compete with others.
I choose self worth, not self pity.
I choose integrity over conforming.
I choose peace over bullshit.
I choose me.
#hopedealer #changeisgonnacome
Metamorphosis…
As a child, I was carefree, with a zest for life. I didn’t know about responsibility then, or have worry. I didn’t understand the concept of adulthood, paying bills, raising children. I didn’t know about the harshness of cruel people, who the taxman or bill collector was, or that I would soon walk the road to darkness.
In my early to late adulthood, I was taught the hard lessons of love, the fear of crippling anxiety, the sadness of the battle with the bottle, the raw truth of feeling less than.
I felt the defeat of being overweight, the sadness of lack of joy, and had an overwhelming dreaded falseness that I could not become who that little girl on the left dreamed of.
In my midlife, I found the love of running… and today I inhale gratitude with each breath.
I welcome joy, I preach hope. I tell the booze to shut up and lay down. I make my choices. I decide who stays and who goes, and I will choose peace over bullshit every time.
Faith leads the way. Hope lights the path, and perseverance steps you there.
Take a step… take a breath… and find your way to your metamorphosis 🖤.
#hopedealer #IAintDoneYet
Thank you for supporting my writing and running endeavors at RunBeforeyouFly.com. I’m Suzanne Swanson and I’d love for us to keep in touch!
Timely Tuesday…
Back from a well rested time at the beach. With so much going on in this crazy world, how wonderful it felt to “almost feel normal” again.
Nostalgia flooded my mind all throughout the week as the smell of Coppertone, French fries, seagulls, and kids laughing brought me to a happy place of memories as a child growing up with beach vacations.
I realize as I get older earthly material things mean less and less to me… and the time spent with my family and good friends is priceless. Life is truly flying by quickly, and now more than ever the present moment is where I must try like hell to allow myself to stay in.
I also became more aware that I am typically very hard on myself, but also that I am uniquely me… that what I do matters, and that where I have been and where I am going tell my tale of just what I am made of.
Today I woke up in my little hometown, back on my country roads, with my familiar surroundings, and a renewed sense of why I do what I do.
I know where I have been, I know where I am going… 
“The cure for anything is truly salt water” ~
Once a year, the countdown on my calendar begins. I mark my beach vacation in a special color. I wait with anticipation to get to this place. A place of sweet summer smells, crashing waves, and miles of sand to toss my cares to.
The sea for me is cathartic. It amazes me. It’s gentle and sweet one minute, strong and powerful the next. It’s a place where I release all my worries. Reflect on where I have been, and pray for better days ahead.
This morning as I was running on the boardwalk, I watched the people. I see each of their faces. Some are young, some are battered, some are aged with wrinkles, some are sun-soaked, some smiling with excitement, some are deeply troubled with sadness.
I think about where they may have been in life, what their story is. Why has their journey led them to this place on this day?
I will be using this time to spend with my family, to stay off social media… as I do find that once in a while, I need to rest my mind from all of the world.
Disconnect back into myself, journal, work on my writing… and truly return to the days when being at the beach was a time worth waiting for.
Take time for yourself today. Hit the reset button, disconnect from everyone else’s crap, and focus on what is right in front of you.
Life is short… the beach is timeless, and a period of restructuring ourselves and quieting all outside noise is a must for continued spiritual growth.
Get up and get after life today. 💙. Amen.
#hopedealer #shuttingdownmymind
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This morning I set out for my 15-mile training run.
Today was rough… humidity at 98%, and an added challenge to run without music for that distance to allow time for truly resting my head from purposeful noise… and just allowing nature’s music to be the background today.
It’s these days I often think of my Dad in heaven. So many thoughts are going through my mind…
Happy that he’s at peace, a little jealous that he doesn’t have to deal with the stressors of what’s around us. Heartbroken that I can’t ask him advice on how to deal with certain things…
But even still as I round the corner to finish this run, I know he is looking down… proud at what I have overcome, smiling at who I am becoming, and glowing because his lifelong harsh but gentle teachings are woven in me.
Fifteen miles of “I-get-to-wake-up-and-do-what-I-love…”
Life has really been good to me. 💙Amen.
Today is my rest day. Today is my day to allow myself the much-needed physical break of pushing my body to its limits the previous week. Today is necessary and needed.
Today my mind is tired, too. As much as we try our best, we can easily get caught on the racetrack of uninvited thoughts, fearful imaginings… temporarily stuck on the rewind button of would’ve and should’ve… or the fast forward button of the what-if’s.
We forget to stay in the right now… in the very present moment.
My job as a nurse can be mentally taxing. Covid is tiring. It’s exhausting. I try my best to trust in what I know, to help those even who are bitter, and to stay grounded in my roots and beliefs that led me to this field.
My Job as Mom makes me question my own choices at times. I ask myself, am I teaching my children how to survive in a crazy world? Am I teaching unconditional love? The worry never ceases, yet with faith as the foundation… I know they will be just fine.
In pausing… I ask myself, did I make the best food choices I could last week? Did I run my heart out with pure love and joy of what my sneakers allow me to accomplish? Did I practice diligence and perseverance?
I can get in my own way. My head space can be annoying, relentless, and a pain in the ass. But my mind teaches me. My thoughts can be changed. I can look at life any way I choose. I have control of what I put in my mouth. I stay sober, I eat right, and I try my best.
Give yourself permission to feel… to question… to make adjustments.
Allow time to sit alone with your soul. Ask it what it needs, and then allow the universe to help you get there. Reflect unto others your gifts.
Reflect often and softly, reflect clearly and wildly… be gentle with your decisions, and forgiving in your results.
Amen 🖤.
A reader writes in:
It takes raw transparency and admission. It takes sleepless nights, and self-evaluation. It takes brutal honesty, and a solid moral compass.
It takes sacrifice, selflessness, and sanity. It takes 4 a.m. wake ups, and sweat, and tears. It takes humbleness, and acceptance, and an openness to learn.
It takes less outings, and more sleep, less processed shit, and more whole foods. It takes pushing yourself, and pavement, and pride.
It takes simplicity, and serenity. It takes less ego and more higher power. It takes more giving and less receiving.
It takes willpower, and determination. It takes big dreams and ditching small-minded thinking. It takes love, and hope, faith, and trust.
Yeah… that’s what it takes… all of it.
Take it or leave it… but believe in you. Believe in what your soul yearns for, and believe with all of this… anything is possible.
Amen ❤️. #hopedealer #transparency #transformationjourney
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When self-doubt creeps in and negativity creates a hazy film over our progress… changing our perspective can make a world of difference.
See yourself through different eyes… love who you are. Be proud of the accomplishments and progress you’ve made.
Accept the things that cannot be undone, and continue to march forward, placing the building blocks of your dreams and goals into action.
Self doubt will come. People will try to cloud your vision, and trials of life will attempt to strip you of the faith that is necessary for contentment and peace.
Seek today to be happy on purpose. Know that waking up and trying to be better, moving your body, and mentally seeing your destination is critical to a healthy mindset.
You are allowed to be unsure, you are allowed to self question… that’s where growth comes from. Shift your perspective… simplify the plan, and trust that you are exactly where you need to be your journey today
Let’s make today beautiful…
Join our safe space where we will share, inspire, love, and grow!
Run Before You Fly Private Facebook Group with Suzanne Swanson is open to all who wish to continue to share their experiences, love of running, and battles of life, with each other. Together we are better.
Fulfillment Friday…
My old life was a mess. My terrible habits. My lack of respect for myself and others brought me to a place of unhappiness.
I tried numerous times to get my shit together with little result. I was lonely, fear-struck, overweight, sick, stuck, tired, and deflated.
4:30 am used to be the time I would just be crawling into bed along with my regrets and whisky stained tear drops… praying to stop my insanity.
Today at 4:30 am I was sipping my rocket fuel… getting ready to slay double digits down the boulevard.
You want to be transformed? Good… let’s go. 🖤
You want to be fulfilled… take my hand and I’ll show you the way. Amen.
#hopedealer #runningmotivation #fullfillment #dontmakeexcuses
Instant Joyful Human: 💙
Directions: Lace one pair of comfortable running sneakers.
Place favorite junk headband, and turn music UP!
Breathe. Grab favorite hydration beverage… smile and GO 💜.
Results may vary by location, and how much you move your ass. Some restrictions may apply. No money back guarantee.
Warning ⚠️… the runner you see pictured is actually a runner and full of joy. Smiling is contagious. DO try this at home!