Surrounded.

"Surround yourself with the dreamers and doers, the believers and thinkers, but most of all, surround yourself with those who see greatness within you, even when you don't see it yourself."

I ran 10 miles so early in the morning, my face needed a ninja mask and my mind was cleared before my body warmed up. It was the kind of cold that leaves you to think of anything but your numb hands.  The kind of frost that makes everything crunchy right down to individual blades of grass.  Gone are the geese and rabbits; the squirrels are still nestled up in their tree houses; and the path is clear as all of the leaves have long fallen away.  There is no sound but your inhale and exhale.  There is no distraction.

After mile 1 woke me up, I spent the remaining 9 running around the Art Museum and UPenn, behind a giant power plant and through beautiful new developments down by the water.  It was, as it usually is, a beautiful sunrise hitting the sides of Philly's skyline as I came back across the 30th Street Bridge, when I thought of my best friend hunkering down and getting ready to climb Kilimonjaro.  At that moment, this event was approximately 22 hours off.  As I ran the last of the cold miles back to a hot shower, I thought of what it took to get her to Africa this Christmas.  With each step, I found myself in awe of the sheer bravery with which she lives life.  There is no second guessing, no questioning, no what-ifs, no wavering and certainly no quitting.  I am lucky to be her student.  I am lucky to love her.

That day, I found myself so grateful for those 90 very cold minutes and 10 very cold miles.  It gave me peace to reflect on the people that I've surrounded myself with and their stories.  There are those that have lost everything and build themselves back up day by day; they are heroes for overcoming epic pain; they are fierce competitors and wily opponents; they support me blindly; they care when I fall and check in on me when I'm sick; they take care of my body, mind and spirit when I forget to; they are the ones that dream with me when I say "I think I want to run an Ultra;" they buy me sunscreen every summer and congratulate me every February 14th on another year lived well; they lead by example and not with words; they try cases with juries; they save lives; they run marathons after they've had strokes; they walk next to me when I can't remember how; they remind me that when we were kids, I was super uncoordinated; they show me sand and send me shells; they have babies; they show up, listen and love me no matter what; they teach me how to cook; they hurt when I hurt and laugh when I laugh; they share honestly and openly; they hold so many of my firsts; they remember; they recover and coach because they can't play; they write beautifully and often; and they inspire me to do more today, and be more tomorrow, than I thought I ever could.

And now that my brave little best friend has been on this mountain for approximately 36 hours and all of the toasts to her safety have been had, I want the world to know that "it is never too late to live the life you'd always imagined."  Go ahead.  Get on with it.