Be Unsinkable

Tomorrow will be my 23rd day of the Give it 100 challenge, and if there’s anything that I’ve learned from running, it’s this: life gets easier when we stop talking about how hard it is.

For the first week of running, most of my videos were full of “Ahh, my legs!” and “I’m dying” and “I can’t do it”. But when I stopped doing that and I started saying motivating things, I felt better. Life is all about attitude.

Back when I was in track, my hurdles coach used to tell me to stop talking to myself negatively. That was hard, and I didn't master it until long after the season was over. But she had a point. She knew something that I didn't. Because when I run and I tell myself good things, and when I push myself forward, I feel more capable. When I feel low and focus on the legs and the chest pain, that's all there is.

We need to surround ourselves with positivity - whether it's while running, working, or just journeying through life. There's a quote by Goi Nasu that says:

“An entire sea of water can’t sink a ship unless it gets inside the ship. Similarly, the negativity of the world can’t put you down unless you allow it to get inside you.”

Sometimes the trials of life seem overwhelming, but in the end, we choose how we process them. We choose how they affect us. We don't have to let the water in. We can be unsinkable.

Lehi's family in the Book of Mormon is one of the greatest examples of negative VS positive. Nephi is positive and says he'll do as God commands, while Laman and Lemuel murmur (complain). The trials that they faced were the same, but because of their attitude, I'm sure Nephi's brothers had a far more miserable experience than he did. It's all about perspective.

The trials that we face are for our good. We learn from them, we grow from them, and we emerge from them as better people. When running, the pain is simply the path towards conditioning, and eventually becoming better. Every step I take in the morning is one step closer to who I want to become. It's the same for all of you.

So be positive! It makes a huge difference, and you'll be grateful for it. The more that you're positive, the more you'll see to be positive about.

Be unsinkable.

Bonnie Gwyn