What A Time To Be Alive.... Right? 2020 Update
What a time to be alive… isn’t that what they say? I had to personally take some time to myself, to gather my thoughts, to hold certain conversations, and to continue to maneuver myself to keep pushing forward. You would have to be completely blind and sitting under a rock to NOT have a clue as to what is happening in the world around us right now, particularly here in the U.S. I wanted to make sure I stated that in such a way for those that follow me outside of the United States of America.
I told God, “tell me what you want me to be and I’ll be it”… and so I have just been using my platforms to continue to use my voice. Life is bigger than sports, much bigger, always has been. I have been having many conversations lately about race, gender, equality, police brutality, black lives matter, life, and how we all need to use our voices to leave our mark on this world and to CHANGE things around us.
It has been quite exhausting to TEACH people things they should already know. For example, why black lives should matter? Or to explain the many things happening in everyday life that proves or continues to show others that WE are not all treated equally. So I had to take time away from writing a bit. But now that I’m back in action… let us catch up.
We are still working to find a new “normal” within this pandemic. Covid-19 is still alive and well, although during the last few weeks you may not be able to tell depending on where you are in the world right now. Things have slowly but surely been opening back up once again. I have been getting back in the gym, working out and training athletes. There are a few gyms within a few hours of St. Louis that I have been invited to go and train, but honestly, I just want to be safe about the situation and not really travel at the moment. If we weren’t in the middle of this pandemic then I certainly would have been to several different spots right now.
And since I have not been traveling at this time, I have been keeping busy and keeping active right here. I have several podcast episodes to upload, had some great conversations with other women in sports, trainers, pro athletes etc. It’s always great to connect with others and speak about current events and also our passions within the game.
Currently I am on a partial social media binge. I say “partial” because, I have deleted a few apps off of my phone at this time to allow me to focus on some things, I needed the mental space as well as the storage space, but I also have a few obligations that require me to do some things using my social media platforms, so I’m making sure I handle those as well.
It’s been so weird not being in a season of hoops right now. It had been over 3 months before I ran up and down in a 5 on 5 setting, and that first go around was ROUGH. But I loved being back on it of course. Tonight I will have another opportunity to get in some cardio that way, and I am taking full advantage of it all. Just can’t take it or ANYTHING for granted at this point. I have started doing these open runs for female hoopers in the area that are looking to get up and down.
I wish that there were more female athletes in the area who would workout/hoop all day, everyday. Might be a hard thing to ask for, but I don’t know. It’s just different out this way. I’m not talking about work and life getting in the way either, I’m talking about the mentality of NOT being able to pass up an opportunity to workout or hoop because you love it that much. But with that said, I will continue to work with the younger generation to build those mentalities, to help people reach a new level of competitiveness and drive, that will hopefully allow them to reach their goal. Not only in athletics but for whatever they hope to accomplish in life altogether.
On another note, there have been conversations had about what the next few months will bring. Other countries are in the process of getting back to normalcy while taking some precautions so that they can get back to playing sports again. Soccer (futbol) is back in action in many European countries, I know the men’s league in Israel resumed play as well, and then on the women’s side of overseas basketball they are figuring out when league play will officially begin for the next season and beginning to sign players.
Now that we’ve had a chance to catch up a little bit… and before I go… recently I lost a very good friend of mine. Justin Love… a great man, father, leader, coach, and so much more. This loss is and has been something pretty hard to grasp. He meant so much to a lot of people. A legend if you knew him at all, a legend in the Mascoutah and St. Louis area, a SLU Billiken Hall of Famer. There will never be enough words to adequately describe what he meant to me and others. I just know that with everything I do I’ll do my best to add a little more Love to it. If you would like to help make an impact and help with a fundraiser made in his honor, where all proceeds go to his family, go to jlr2020.wswebstore.com!
Back to the grind I go. More podcasts, more blogs, more training and workouts, and sharing more of my aspirations in life. Be a blessing to someone, make this world a better place than how you entered it.