He shoots! He scores!

Lincoln has a basketball hoop downstairs. He convinced me that I should shoot a few with him while I melted into the couch after cleaning all the bedrooms. I told him I'd play as long as I didn't have to move. (Let's not discuss my laziness just yet.) Every time I had the ball he would lunge forward and stuff my shot. None of my attempts ever got near the goal. Soon, Ty wandered down the stairs and the two of them began to play. Lincoln is very competitive and armed with the logic that "if Ty learns to shoot while being guarded he'll get really good", Lincoln continued to stuff him too. It didn't take very much time, 28 seconds to be precise, before Ty was in tears and getting more and more frustrated. But I noticed an interesting thing. He just kept battling, going up against Lincoln even though he couldn't make any progress. Let's face it, a five year age gap in brothers is pretty expansive but in terms of their stubbornness they share the podium. So, from there it continued...Ty, pounding against a wall that refuses to budge.
I began to wonder when and how it would end and then I thought about how often that scenario is played out in our lives. ("Our" in this case being the human race.) How often are we pushing or pulling on a door that is simply not going to open for us. And likewise, do we lock or barricade doors that keep others out? And while we're at it, should we consider the possibility that sometimes the forces holding certain doors closed against us are forces we create ourselves and not some mythical enemy. What kind of things are we missing out on? Friends? Families? Enlightenment? Physical Health? Emotional Health? A new hobby? Talents? Who knows, really. Before I ever ran a marathon I never actually thought about running one. I thought the whole idea sounded like the very definition of insanity. You know, doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result...But, then I got shoved into the process and now I can't really see myself not running at least one per year. In fact, I've chosen the Salt Lake Marathon in April for 2009 if anyone wants to join me.
So, I've got the marathon thing covered but I wonder, what else is out there for me? And you?

This picture is from a trail marathon I did in Aug 2008 at Targhee. It has over 5,000 feet of climb. It's wicked. I'd do it again.