Passion...

What is your passion? What intrigues you to do what you do? Do you love what you are doing? I had this urge to write about passion today. Thoughts run through my mind like a river, winding through the earth. The cool water quickly running over the smooth stones in the river bed; moving left and right, carving a deep path for the river to flow from one point to another. This makes me think of my passion. How did it start, where did it come from, why does it make me curious to learn more?

Every one has a different passion; some may have a similar field, like coaching sports, teaching art classes or riding motorcycles, but it will vary person to person. Some may love to coach football, others want to coach golf or swimming. Each person also adds their flair to their passion; no two coaches or instructors are the same.

My passion has been in with fitness, health and wellness. I flash back to when I was little - taking tennis and ballet lessons, then doing Tae Kwon do, gymnastics, horseback riding, golf and on and on. This was the beginning of my river or small stream to be more exact. My parents had me active at a young age and I am so grateful for this! This planted the seed for me to enjoy playing and being in an 'active state'.

As I flash through the years, no matter where I went I found something that kept me moving and that challenged me. Moving from California, to Washington, to Montana I kept up with the ballet, started horseback riding, golf and added a few more activities to my list. Then moving to Hawaii, I started running and working out at a gym, rolling out, stretching, doing what I wanted to stay healthy and active. After two years in Hawaii, I started Outrigger Canoe Paddling and wow was that challenging, but it was beyond a great experience. Most recently moving to California, I continued my running, signed up for some half marathons, challenge races and then tried some wrestling and mixed martial arts classes. I wanted to get involved with martial arts again because I felt that it was a great tool when I was younger, prepping me to be physically and mentally strong.

After partaking in all of these activities I wanted to try something different. I learned of CrossFit and started taking classes. Flash forward to the present, I am focused on training for the CrossFit Games. I spend numerous hours training each day, week, month for my goal. I have created a deep river, flowing  with numerous years of being active. Each activity/sport creating a deeper desire for my passion. For my love to be active and challenge myself, to see if I can do all the work that is put in front of me. I am intrigued to see what I can do, both mentally and physically.

There have been ups and downs and it hasn't been all sunshine and cupcakes along the way (I have eaten a cupcake or two or six... they were pretty good). Some days are great days were I hit a PR, others are struggles to hit some numbers, but I keep going. Why? Because I love this, I enjoy pushing myself, testing myself to see what I can do. I love to workout, to train, to work towards a goal. I make sure to enjoy myself along the way. I want to enjoy my journey so when I look back, I can smile and say, I had fun and enjoyed myself every step of the way. I can guarantee that I will still be working out when I am older.

So for those amazing loved ones, friends, family and acquaintances that read my blog and support me, I hope you find your passion. I hope you do what you love and do what inspires you. Follow your heart, your dreams and create your own river. It is never to late to start.

~ MCA