Five a.m. looks gorgeous but only when my eyes are closed.
Five a.m…. Crawling across the bedroom floor to shut off the alarm set on my phone… Eyes still shut as I put on my workout attire at a glacier pace… Body convulsing in the frost of the morning as I warm up the car… Not so pretty.

I went to the gym at this ungodly hour the other morning. There was no reason for my getting up so early, simply because I could. The first twenty minutes seemed to be a battle against my body and I. My body was winning. But I slowly got into the groove of things, woke myself up and got in a great 90 minute workout.

I am not trying to come off as a gloating go-getter but as I finished up on the rowing machine I thought, “I am proud of myself.” And I don’t know when is the last time I thought that.

We are experts at identifying our shortcomings. We can get the 3.6 GPA but still think it should be a 3.7. We can give an exceptional presentation at work but still think in our heads, “that could have been better.” We are own toughest critics and we are merciless, absolutely merciless, when it comes to tearing ourselves to shreds.

Remember those old Friendly’s commercials, where the child would have a great first day of school or perform in a band recital and then the parent would take them to Friendly’s to get an ice cream. It was a symbol of a job well done.

Well we are not children anymore and half of us won’t feel very proud once we eat that three-scoop dish of Hunka Chunka PB fudge but what has happened to pride? We are all waking up every morning and doing amazing things and half of us are never giving any credit to ourselves. We are never stopping to pat the most important of backs. Our Own.

There is not a single soul in this world who is the same as you. Be proud of that. The gifts you give to this world and the lives you touch are in your hands, and only your hands. Be proud of that. The route you have taken and choices you have made have led you to this very moment. You are alive. Be proud of that. Your story is priceless and that is because you have written it as such. Be proud of that.

Drop the criticisms and the cynicism for a few moments. Think of all you have accomplished in the past week or so. We often think that if our actions are not monumental than they don’t count as a milestone. But I tend to believe that every gesture we make, every word we deliver to another and every stride that we take to figure out just what it means to be human in this world is reason enough to be proud.

Now please, please, please take your right hand and stretch it up towards the sky. Bend it behind your head and pat yourself on the back.

Speaking of pats on the back, I have received an “Over the Top” blogging award from Stephen at Insomnia and Short Attention Spans!

Thank you Stephen for this kind award, it means a great deal to me. My first blogging award, oh goody! So to accept the award I must answer the questions below and then pass the award along…

part 1: answer questions with one word:

7. Your favourite drink? Sex on the Beach

8. Your dream/goal? Simplicity

9. What room are you in? Bedrooom

10. Your hobby? Reading/Writing/Exercising

11. Your fear? Ending up alone.

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? In a place where I am needed.

13. Where were you last night? In bed.

14. Something you aren’t? Ordinary

15. Muffins? Bits of glass muffins.. Ouch!

16. Wish list item? Peace on earth.

17. Where did you grow up? A loving home.

18. Last thing you did? Laid around with my best friend all day.

19. What are you wearing? NYU Tee, sweatpants, slipper boots

20. Your TV? I don’t indulge in TV.. unless its the Biggest Loser

21. Your pets? Lucy, my lab

22. Your friends? My life.

23. Your life? Precious.

24. Your mood? Content.

25. Missing someone? Fixing that problem in two days. NYC here I come.

26. Vehicle? Arly the CRV

27. Something you’re not wearing? A bikini. Though I wish I were.

28. Your favourite store? Trader Joe’s

29. Your favorite color? The color of your eyes. JK. Yellow.

30. When was the last time you laughed? Five minutes ago. Life is funny.

31. Last time you cried? Last night, sorry I cannot help but cry when I watch the Biggest Loser.

32. Your best friend? Corey Lynn Ney. 15 years.

33. One place that I go over and over? Boston Donuts, where else.

34. One person who emails me regularly? Kaitlin Bevins.

35. Favourite place to eat? The Boynton

part 2: pass the award on…

Ah the hard part. I am new the blogosphere so I will try my best but many of the bloggers I have come across have been both admirable and creative, but here it goes:

1) Allison at Lemonade Life: Love this girl’s spirit and have been inspired by many of her blogging endeavors.

2) Lisa at Love,Lisa: Brand new blog but I can already tell that this blog will be big. She has a great layout and an even greater outlook.

3) Paige at Little Miss Paige: Enjoyable to read, laugh out loud moments. Spunky and unique.
So check out their blogs!