i hate titles. too much pressure.

Lately, I have been a confidant. People have been telling me loads of stuff about their personal lives. It really boosts my self esteem because I obviously must be a trust worthy person, right? It has been a little weird though... Usually, I am the talker and the teller and I've kind of changed rolls in a lot of my friendships. Not completely, I still talk a lot, but it has been nice to be on the other side. The listener. I like to be able to listen to people's stories and what they have going on in their lives and what they are struggling with. It's almost like an example to follow when I hit rough patches in my own life. I can remember how other people dealt with their problems and then more easily help myself. I like that I can be both a listener and a talker. I feel like it helps me to relate to people better and be a better friend.

“Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” 
“When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen.” 

I don't want to be so busy with my own problems and life that I wouldn't have time to help someone out with their own problems. I'm always willing to be a "listening ear".

for your entertainment

"...My body told me to quit a couple of miles ago..."

I've never been any sort of  an athlete. I'm accident prone and have an extreme lack of motivation, but at the beginning of the summer I made a goal. My goal was to participate in an organized race. I sat down at the computer and looked for a race that looked do-able. I found  Cooper's Run and marked July 26th on my calendar. I had never ran 3 consecutive miles before so I was kinda nervous but I knew that I could start working on it and be fine. This was in early June and I really procrastinated my training. I ran a mile a couple of times during June, but not nearly enough to count as "training" for this race. Two weeks ago I really got serious. I had waited too long and I was getting so nervous that I started having dreams about falling during the race and dying or the race being cancelled all together. I really wanted to do well and be able to finish the race. I started running a mile about everyday to get my body used to running. On Friday night before the race I layed in my bed and all I could think of was that I had never run the full 3 miles before. I was so so nervous and I wanted to barf. It was that excited nervous, though. I knew that as soon as I was done I would be so happy with myself and my accomplishment, I knew that I would be able to do it. I was about to achieve my goal and by 10:00 the next morning it would all be over.
I got to the race a little early and my insides were going nuts. I could not keep still to save my life. I tried listening to music to relax myself a little bit but nothing seemed to really work. Finally the race began. The first mile was the hardest. I flew through mile 2 and 3. As I was running toward the Finish line/timer (and the fireman who soaked me with the fire hose-not fun) all I could think about was how I had just done what I never thought was even slightly possible. I finished at 46:30. My original goal time was 45:00. I'm not even slightly disappointed with my time, It just gives me a new goal- Run a 5k in under 46:30. I am so excited to start running more 5k's and hopefully work up to some longer, more challenging races!

^ Courtney and I at the finish line 

Running my little heart out^