The Home Stretch

Home stretch (plural home stretches): The final part of a race course from the last curve to the finish line. The final part of a distance or the final effort needed to finish. I think we're finally on the home stretch with this project.

I bet you all didn’t know that my dad is a HUGE horse racing fan. Like, not just the Kentucky Derby interest, but pretty much any horse race that’s on, kind of commitment. On Saturday night we watched the replay of the 2015 Preakness Stakes.

That’s a commitment.

It was so long ago, I think he was still surprised by the winner (American Pharoah, if you’re wondering). And the funny part is, I had to change it from regular horse racing to watch a replay of an old horse race. Apparently, horse racing is the ONLY current sport right now, and it’s on every single weekend. You may have gotten the snapchats.

Horses are beautiful, and the sport of horse racing is very exciting. I’m not downplaying any of that, but, having to watch it every weekend is beginning to take a toll. I’ve started taking my Kindle and happily read while we’re off to the races. I’m obsessed with Words with Friends again. I’ve also been known to take a power nap while the races are on.

To be completely honest, without the crowd, the races are a little boring. Watching the difference of the before and after, I began to wonder, what will our after look like? How different is our new normal going to look once the quarantine is lifted?

While watching the 2015 version, I literally cringed watching the crowd and HOW CLOSE everyone was to each other. I think I’ll be forever changed by this, and I still don’t know how to process that, let alone label it as good or bad. If I’m being completely honest, I’m a little nervous about the future. I think it’s going to be very a very different world we live in.

That being said, there are things that only a quarantine can force someone to learn. For instance, training a puppy is simultaneously as easy and as hard as it sounds. Not much better than a newborn at times, but the just like a newborn, the joy far outweighs the drama.

Cooking has also become even more of a hobby these days. I’m no longer content with the same old meals and have tried to make some new things during this time.

I’ve finally perfected my chocolate chip cookie recipe and make them more than I care to admit.

I’m writing every day, and loving the direction of book 4.

Hulu is my new best friend.

My Calm app is still my daily companion.

And I’m grateful. Grateful for all the little things I see now that I didn’t when I was racing around in ‘real life.’ Music, flowers, birds, and the bing of a text from a friend. I appreciate my friends so much more now.

Yoga pants.

So for today, knowing we’re in the home stretch, I want to know what you’re grateful for during this time. It’s so easy to watch the news and complain, but I challenge you to find a different perspective. I want you to look around and appreciate exactly where you are right now. And if you can’t, then what is it you’d change? It’s okay to visit pity city, but it’s not okay to live there.

Find something to be grateful for as if it were your job.

Because it is.

And then read something fabulous. Because you’ve earned it.

xo, Mo