Category: Self Love

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The Day is as Good as We Make It.

The day is only as good as we make it. I woke up… did my collagen shooter, laced my sneakers, and now it’s time to breathe in some wellness, and exhale some toxicity.

Habits and routines are a critical part of my day. The quiet of the morning, the ink of the pen, the blank page of my notebook paper come first. It is here where I set my intentions for this day.

I let go of what I can’t control, I do my best to forgive my shortcomings, and I let the gentle strike of my felt tip pen ease me into my day.

Seek to create habits that start your day without disruption. Seek approval only from the depths of your longing soul… not the opinion of others. Strive to make the words on your paper a reality, not just empty promises.

My sneakers are part of my story. The answers, the solace, the discipline, and the gratitude they have taught me continue to not only amaze me, but keep me aligned with my purpose… and steady me when I stumble and sway.

Simplicity and contentment are often in the lost and found. We always crave, uproot, and hunt more… for bigger or better. Today, let joy be found in something simple. Find contentment in the ordinary. There is plenty of goodness for you and for me. Go find it.

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Light Bringer.

Are you a light bringer and a world shifter?

I get it. No… like I really get it. I ask myself, am I really of this time and space? Has my brain been hijacked? Am I truly witnessing this world fall apart before my eyes?

What happened to the value of a dollar? The meaning of a handshake and its honor for trust. The family table at dinner time, and simplicity of holding the door for someone.

Every day I get challenged. My demons want to me to re-introduce myself. The whiskey bottle subliminally hovers, and the processed comfort foods beg for a chance to take their stronghold.

These things always resurface… coming up for just enough air to try pull me back down… to prove the vicious cycle can reset.

To shift and grow… to brighten and conquer… I must eagerly remind myself of the teachings of my sneakers… and this road.

The conditions are constantly changing. Things insidiously try to stop me from smiling, trick me into un-believing in my ability to play my part in making this world better, and knock me off course so the light dims and conceals my purpose to myself and others.

You have the ability to shine and shift today. Grace is here… there is no need to fight yesterday. Block the mental dimming switch, refuse to stay stuck, and inch your feet just a little.

You’ll ask yourself… will this really matter? To me? To others? The short answer is yes… someone is learning from you. Teach them well.

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Instant Replay: The Run to Change Lives Interview

For those of you who would like to know more about my backstory… here is my interview with Run to Change Lives.

Run to Change Lives is an amazing organization with a mission to build the most loved Running community with a passion for Changing lives. They are a beautiful group of people who helped my story reach so many individuals in need.

Please check out their Facebook Page and support their mission.

My goal of building a community and helping people in need will never be closed minded. Support comes in all directions, from all walks of life, and backgrounds.

My mission will not include a scarcity mindset but one of dealing Hope, spreading joy, and sharing the compassion and good works of other like communities. Period. The. End.

#RUNBEFOREYOUFLY#runtochangelives

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Talk to Your Heart.

Something on my heart today is… you. The messages just this morning alone I have received… they come flooding in with words like “Help, I can’t, I’m drowning, I’m trying, I’m lost, I’m lonely, I’m fat, I’m done, this scares me”… the list goes on.

The darkness of each of us is real. Goals we don’t meet. Disappointing news at our door daily, failed diets, health problems, divorces, addictions, all the profound uncertainties that we know we can’t control… yet each day we give them an open invitation to burrow inside us…striking that all too familiar feeling of unrest and discord.

Waking up and doing something is victory. Drinking one less drink, smoking one less cigarette, moving your body two more inches than you did yesterday is victory.

Saying no is victory. Saying yes is victory. Trying to outrun all that weighs you down will tire you, and eat away at the goodness of your core.

Sit with whatever it is… let the tears sting, and the saltwater cleanse… move toward grace and possibility with ease rather than breathlessness.

Talk to your heart. Find out what it needs. When life saddens me, or pushes me into heightened awareness… the Scorpio in me wants to fight… the empath in me wants to cry… but the soul in me wants to run. My answers are always in the asphalt, and the open road.

Find where your answers come from. Let it in… hold it tight… and know that your words are not lost on a message board, they are not unread… they are here.

I hear you. I see you. I believe in you. Now let’s get going… there’s work to be done.

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“New Year, New You”

Sleepless nights. Tossing and turning. Hating my choices. Angry at where life “put me.” Feelings of low self esteem. Daily wars with my inner self. HATE. EAT. DRINK. REPEAT.

That was my life for years, only I did it in silence so I could isolate myself from penetrating words, good people, and the truth.

It wasn’t until the long distance sport of running taught me to be tougher than my demons. It taught me patience, and endurance. 

It taught me humbleness, and mercy. It taught me that a little daily discipline, coupled with passion, and a good diet could be the answer to unlocking the door and leaving my living hell, and a hell I chose to stay in far too long.

We all hear the same crap. “It’s a New Year, New You”… “Start tomorrow, today is over.” “I’m going to do it… just not today.” 

I’m here to tell you: today counts. This minute counts. You don’t need a new month, or new turn of the numbers to give you permission to become your greatest self. Our addictions, the errors of our ways, and our poor choices can only thrive if we allow them to.

Be done with your own crap. Take the good advice you give others but never follow yourself. Make YOU a priority, don’t over complicate it. Eat a vegetable, drink more water, and let your story tell itself.

Somewhere today someone is watching you. Be a good teacher, and be a kind human. That. Is. All.

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Graceful Exit.

I hear the clock ticking. The second hand makes known how much time is left before I say goodbye to 2021, and prepare to develop, grow, and thrive in the next 365 days.

To exit something gracefully is a challenge, and for many of us, implies multiple meanings. It can mean we must let go of the thing that has weighed so heavy on us… not altering its validity, not denying its lesson or importance… but simply and painstakingly cutting the cord of what is preserving bitterness in order to end the madness.

For some, it may be exiting a toxic relationship or friendship, where finally the tight grasp that a certain person once had over you has loosened just enough to be set free.

We all carry the power to battle our mental hijackers and spiritual strongholds. We all tolerate things that are beyond ludicrous. We condone, we consume, and we swallow the negative backwash of others. Exit gracefully, intentionally leave behind the baggage, and arrive at the new starting line of life.

For me this year has had its rolling hills. I’ve had tears, I’ve had smiles wider than canyons, and I’ve had sadness that aches to the core… but it’s kept its promise. It has made me a better athlete, a better friend, and has given me more insight to understand what I want and what I will demand for my continued becoming.

Exit this year gracefully… bow your head in thanks, raise your hand not your white flag, and run into the New Year with a blank canvas.

Who will you be in 2022? What will you accomplish? Who and what you take with you and who and what you leave behind will impact your results. Stop being okay with what’s not okay.

May we all find our balance, exit gracefully, and land ever so softly to new beginnings.

#runningmotivation#RUNBEFOREYOUFLY#exitthematrix

Writing as Self Therapy – Self Guided Journaling Challenges Coming Soon

Run and write your way to a happier, healthier and more purpose-driven life. Sign up to hear from Suzanne via email. We’ll have some thought-provoking writing challenges, discussion groups and other empowering activities planned for 2022. Sign up for our emails here.

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Steady as she Goes.

Something about the wind comforts me. Not too much wind, or too cold wind, but a gentle wind that takes me to a place of peace.

As I stepped outside today, the wind greeted me. There was a familiar yet unfamiliar smell that takes me back to a place of nostalgia. It reminded me that I’m alive to feel all the things… the good, the bad, the comfortable, the uncomfortable.

The wind allows me to sway, it moves me with force… yet it eases up just enough until I gain my footing again and can continue to move.

We will always loose our footing. We get unsteady, we swerve, we stumble across places that both unearth feelings of deep questioning, yet serve our souls to accept grace and become better people.

Move about, sway from time to time, force yourself into those places of pondering. Realize just how miraculous this life is. Accept what your challenges are, and be determined that no matter what… when we practice, smile, and persist… we will find our balance.

Steady as she goes. Amen.

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The Gray Area.

The Gray Area… is the place between black and white. It’s the place where truths are discovered, hurts are healed, tears are wiped, and love wins.

It’s the place that tore me apart, made me whole, begged me to stop and forced me to go.

It’s the place where hatred was laid to rest, forgiveness was born. Where the glistening of the pavement, and the sounds of my feet hitting it… set me free.

It’s the place where dreams are made, wishes come true, and miracles do exist.

Yes… I love color. I love all things beautiful and bright… but may we never forget the simplistic value of what we learn in between the black and white.

Blessings, Loves…

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Transient Thursday

She took a trip deep inside her. She didn’t pack much for this day trip. She wasn’t staying long… her past asked her to sit, pull up a chair, and stay awhile.

She smiled softly with an all knowing that the overthinkers, the overwhelmers, the doubters, all the cunning games of her mind would soon enter the room for a visit too.

She allowed them all to sit and one by one she gave them an opportunity to pitch their deal of opportunity to her… if she chose to stay.

As she got up to leave they spoke quickly and desperately, asking why she was leaving so soon.

“I’m a transient guest today,” she answered.

“I respect what you have taught me. I acknowledge the things I cannot change, and I will never give up and allow you to hijack the contentedness that I cultivated from the cracks of light that you barely let in.”

My past is impermanent, my presence is joy, and my future is whatever I want it to be… and so is yours.

Know that the places we must visit from time to time are necessary. That sometimes to “become” we must “unbecome” first. That the dark places deep within us are often softer, and kinder than we think.

The greatest of your strengths are often built from the aftermath. Settle for nothing less than what brings you warmth, brilliance, and passion.

“Shut the door on your way out,” the past screamed… and with her eyes she spoke:

“Think twice about inviting me next time… good day.”

Stay in Touch with Suzanne

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!

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Whispers in the Hall.

They whispered down the hall at her. She could hear all the chatter. The “she’ll never be’s” and the “she wishes she was”.

She didn’t fit in. She didn’t know how. She was lost. She was lonely… she was afraid.

She questioned, she stood, she begged, she knelt… she waited… until her purpose was born.

To all those things that constantly try to break me, stop me, persuade me, and derail me…

You ain’t never seen what a little Irish, a little pavement, and a whole lot of belief that my creator knew how my journey would change lives can do.

You can stay stuck or you can fly… either way is painful, and not without sacrifice.

Which legacy do you choose to leave?

#RUNBEFOREYOUFLY

#Christmaskicks #wecanallmakeadifference