Thought of the day

[Randy]

Please feel free to share your favorites with us.

"Self-pity is an emotion reserved for quitters"

Randy

[Randy]

OK, now I am feeling reflective, so here are a few thoughts. I was thinking about how thankful I am to the many people that have played a big part in my recovery. I am truly blessed since the the list is very long. There are many people that I owe a debt of gratitude. Thank you for everything you do and have done.

Here are some reflections on "gratitude"...

"At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us."

"To educate yourself for the feeling of gratitude means to take nothing for granted, but to always seek out and value the kind that will stand behind the action. Nothing that is done for you is a matter of course. Everything originates in a will for the good, which is directed at you. Train yourself never to put off the word or action for the expression of gratitude."
-Albert Schweitzer

"You say grace before meals. All right. But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink."
-G.K. Chesterton

"Don't pray when it rains if you don't pray when the sun shines. "
-Leroy Satchel Paige

Some pre-Thanksgiving Day thanks!

Randy

[Randy]

Hi everyone,

Sorry for the long layoff, but I have been covered up with work-related assignments. I did another race recently and had less than stellar results. But as tough as it was and as poorly as I thought I did, I did not come in last.

Today's thoughts are about "change". It is inevitable. Even the people who say change is OK show otherwise by their actions. A lot of people will say that they are "OK with change, just as long as it does not affect me or how I do things."

A lot has changed in my life recently. I am learning to roll with it. While I do not totally embrace change, I am learning to adapt.

Change:

"Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature's delight."
-- Marcus Aelius Aurelius

"Other things may change us, but we start and end with the family."
-- Anthony Brandt

"Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me."
-- Carol Burnett

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
-- Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

...and my mom's favorite:
"Lord grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference."
-- Saint Francis of Assisi

Occasionally we need to yield to the winds, trim our sails, and adjust our paths.

Don't fear change. It is a new trip! Enjoy the ride.

Be strong. Be there for each other.

[Anne I Smith]

Randy,
This so good Randy and so true. All of it. I especially like the Serenity Prayer. I have Chronic Kidney Disease which is continuously getting worse. Now I have issues with my endocrine system. Not sure what's going on. All of your fhoughts will really help me to live day to day with my ever changing health issues. I love your thoughts of the day. Anne

[Randy]

Hello Anne and greetings from Neckarsulm Germany! I am on an assigment that is job-related. I will be working closely with Audi over the next year. Their plant is just down the street from my hotel. No fitness equipment here, so I guess I will be running for the next two weeks!

The past year has been nothing but non-stop changes. Career, fitness, vision. I could go on and on but I will not. My family still loves and supports me even when I am at my worst (esprecially from a social perspective).

I have made many friends here, friends that I would have not met had the accident not happened last year. So all is not gloom and doom; there is always a bright side!

I am so glad that someone other than me is reading my thoughts. This is how I feel from day to day. Bad days are edited out though. No need bringing anyone down. Regardless of whether anyone reads my ramblings, this is good therapy for me too. I am so happy that you find my thoughts helpful. This means the world to me.

You are always in my thoughts and prayers. I wish you the best that life has to offer.

Now for some sleep. I am wasted! I was in Detroit last week and left from DTW yesterday at 4 PM EDT. Now it is just past noon on Sunday 9/27 (hey it is my birthday today!). Back home it is 3:17 AM. My internal clock has been turned upside down.

Hang in there. Be strong!

[Deb Moloshok]

Randy, Happy Birthday!
A "gift" to you is that your postings are read & contemplated by others. Wishing I could give a gift to support the "bad days" that you edit out of these postings. Remember - you are in my thoughts, even when you or I do not post. Some of my "bad days" I try to stop and breathe and try to recall a helpful posting I've read here (not kidding!).

Again, many thanks for sharing your life, thoughts and quotes. So apropos and helpful to me, and I am sure I am not alone in that.

Be well, Deb

[Randy]

Hi Deb:

Thanks for the nice birthday gift and wonderful comments! It is great motivation for me!

I am a member on several other sites and it amazes me how many survivors talk freeely about hurting themselves or that they wish that their accidents had ended their lives. This saddens me to think that so many people have despaired. My life is now about proving myself anew. It is about testing the limits and, when I find a shortcoming, working my hardest to overcome it! Odd as it sounds, racing and competing has taught me to do just that; I have started many races in last or close to the bottom of the field and plotted a course to come back. I have won, or at least ended up on the podium several times. It would have been easy to quit; to fabricate excuses why I should drop out. But I never have. Now, I am "competing" in my biggest event. And I will not quit and, yes, I will win! No, correct that: WE will win! We are a team.

And my teammates (you all) better not quit either! I will be there at the front pulling you and leading out all of you sprinters so that we can share the top step of the podium after we cross the line together.

Be strong and as I have said here many times, "Don't unclip, never give up, keep pedaling!"

Thanks again,

Randy

[Tom Gakes]

Hi Randy,

As I do with all the posts on the Raisin Hope forum, I periodically read your thoughts of the day. I don't respond that often, but they do make me think about the issues you talk about. I want to thank you for this, and want to encourage you to continue writing here.

Because I only periodically visit this forum, I found out about your birthday a bit late. But better late than never, I want to congratulate you with your birthday. I hope you have many good years to come.

You told us on many other forums people say they wish their accidents would have killed them. That is indeed sad to hear. The Raisin Hope forum is the only forum I visit, and I'm happy most people here are looking at the lighter side of it here. Please tell those people about this site, and show them we are willing to help them in any way we can.

Tom

[Randy]

Tom,

Thank you for your comments. Yes, I always try to steer people to this site. This is a forum where the members share their belief in themselves and in each other. As the name suggests, it is a place for people to come and talk of Hope. It has been a huge part of my life and has helped me to thrive, not simply survive.

I look back on some of my early posts and can recall those days when my future was a lot more uncertain. I have a path forward now and know what I now must do to recover. This path forward was shaped by all of you and your thoughts and encouragement!

Thanks again,

Randy

[Randy]

Hello everyone and Happy Tuesday,

I have been traveling lots recently. In fact, I have been away from home (and my bike) for just about three weeks now! Although I have made new friends and been faced with new challenges, I miss my family terribly.

It has given me some insight as to how they must have felt after I had my accident when my future was in question. While my life was not at risk, the essence of my being, the person I had become, was. Moreover, I was not sure about my future and whether I would ever get through my ordeal and again be the person that my family had known, accepted, and loved.

So, pardon my sentimentality, but here are some thoughts about gratitude. Thanks, everyone, for being there and for your on-going help and support!

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.”
--William Arthur Ward

“When you are grateful fear disappears and abundance appears.”
--Anthony Robbins

“As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.”
--John F. Kennedy

“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
--Author Unknown

"Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone.”
--Gladys Browyn Stern

Excuse me now. I have to call someone and thank them!

Never give up. Don'tr unclip. Keep padaling. And thank your teammates!

Randy

[Deb Moloshok]

How could I possibly read this post. . . . and not express appreciation and admiration for you in sharing with us your life and thoughts - personal insight, reflections and such positive determination.

Thanks for the reminder to express my appreciation to others around me as well - love the William Arthur Ward quote. . . so simple, but that's all it takes to make any day a bit brighter, a simple expression of thanks, of caring, of understanding. . . . .

Regarding your earlier post. . . . "I am a member on several other sites and it amazes me how many survivors talk freely about hurting themselves or that they wish that their accidents had ended their lives. This saddens me to think that so many people have despaired. . . . " The positive attitude, determination, sharing, support that I see here on Raisin Hope is special. A place where healing and living is contagious.

Hope you will be traveling home to your family soon.
Best wishes, Deb

[Randy]

Hi Deb,

Thanks. I return home this Saturday (good!) but have to head back out on Monday (not good!). I will visit with my in-laws next week (good again!).

It is in my nature to keep moving forward, especially when forward progress is not easy. It is also in my nature to be thankful for small favors as well. So many of the people here have made an impact on me. I have many things I need to accomplish before my time is up. There is a reason that I am here and that I am able to continue on. I guess that my job is not qiute over yet.

Now it time for me to pay it forward.

Be well, and thanks again.

Randy

[Deb Moloshok]

Randy,
You certainly are a man on the go!! Enjoy the precious time you have home with your family!

I thought about you today. I was beginning to feel the weight of defeat, the weight of the (negative) repetitiveness of the last few years. Not wanting to sink into “there” - I thought, “gratitude, think gratitude”, looking for the positive side. I thought about the positive sides. I thought about acceptance of what life is / has become. Thought about accepting changes that I would never have dreamed of.

Thinking back on quotes helps. :-)

Ever in the Philadelphia area – let me know.
Deb