What is Getting me to the Finish Line

Reliant Stadium at Sunset - only weeks to go!

I started this job nearly a year ago - and had no idea what I was in for.  Who knew that the road ending in Houston for four very talented basketball teams would be one of the longest work roads for me? 

It started with an email from a friend with a job description - and some very encouraging words from my Aunt Diane - and suddenly I was thrown into planning an iconic sporting event.

I'm used to doing events.  I'm used to long hours, lots of details and sometimes a chaotic scene around me that I am always trying to organize and make sense out of.  But the great thing about the majority of those events was that I was doing it with a team that was like my family - we had a way of doing things, a rhythm to producing an event.  So, even if the events were different each time, it was oft the same group of people working through the same structures and systems we had developed together.

This has been very different.  Completely new team.  Totally new client.  And it's been one wild ride.  A few curve balls thrown at me - some days I wasn't sure I was cut out for the task, some months when I hoped the team we were pulling together could actually pull it off.  And, now that I am less than 40 days out... well, that's when things seem to have come together.  Our team has gelled, we've got a great ethos in the office, we've sort of figured out the client - and we're almost done.  I guess better late than never. 

So, I decided tonight that I needed to focus on the things that are getting me to the finish line - sort of like counting your blessings one by one - as well as savoring a moment, being present in today.  Here we go... here's what's brought me this far:



With Donna Kallmeyer - one of my biggest cheerleaders!

MY FRIENDS and MY FAITH:  Well, first of all, there are some specific names to "shout out."  Donna Kallmeyer.  Martha Moore.  Anne Grizzle.  Brent Walla.  Roxie Chess. Laura Smith. Johnny Myers. Mary Kent Yochum.  My sister Becky.   These are the people who call me, text me, pray for me, give me the extra push I need to stick with it.  To see it through.  To gain new insight from the whole experience and recognize my calling for each day.  They also keep me grounded.

Calling show with Walla in San Diego in Sept.

A LITTLE TASTE OF WHAT I LOVE DOING: Of course, there are the few moments I've gotten to be with my old event family - like flying to San Diego to call a festival with the old team over a weekend... seemed a little crazy to fly out on a Friday, call a show all day Saturday and fly home on Sunday morning. I was tired, but oh so happy to have been in that mix again. Traveling with Laura Smith made it even better... A little taste to get me through this job... a reminder of the things I love about my old job...

EXERCISE: The year before I took this gig I worked out like a lunatic. A "shout out" to my friend (and trainer) Kelly Haley who put me in a place where I could physically handle this job... and quite frankly, staying in shape has also helped me emotionally handle this job. I don't get to be the Gym Rat I was last year, but what I have been able to do is still vitally important to me keeping my sanity.  Of course, I recognize that Kelly is more than trainer friend, she's also my mental health advisor.  Feels good to unload all the angst from a long day and work it out!



Helen's Park

A WALK TO MY FAVORITE PLACE:  When I can't be in Montana... or the Texas Hill Country, I have to find my own little place of beauty and peace in the midst of the urban jungle.  That would be Helen's Park - and a walk there with Brooks on any given Saturday afternoon will do it.  It's hard to explain this place, unless of course you happen to be my neighbor and understand what I'm talking about.  I have no idea who designed this little oasis in the city, but it's beautiful - has gorgeous landscaping, a meandering little river and a lovely fountain that Brooks and I like to sit on the edge of while we watch the cars go by and the planes fly overhead.  The sound of that water drowns out the noise of the city, and with the right song on the iPod I'm transported to another place.


MY HLOC TEAM:  Doug, Karen, Jean, Amarachi, Alex, Crystal, Risa... we're almost there, and I am so grateful for this little team we've assembled.  Who knew we had it in us?  It's been so amazing to see it all come together.  Just when we're figuring it all out, it's almost over.  So many things I won't miss about this gig, but so many things I will miss - mostly you guys and the great ethos we've got going in the office.



With Brooks and Nate on a walk together!

MY SWEET FAMILY:  And, then there's Nate and Dave that get me through... the thought of my family and getting to go back to being the mom and wife that I was - balanced and available!  The thought of planning THREE weeks in Montana this summer and not having to take this job with me again... that's some great motivation... It's also the little things with them like the Friday night dinners and Saturday morning chilling...

So this is my moment of gratitude - my moment of recognizing how it is that I am getting to this particular finish line.  I have worked long and hard on being present - and that's right where I'm at - present and grateful for the people and the parts of my life that keep me going.  And, I know that whatever the next leg of the journey might be, these will still be the people and the things that get me down the next road!

-Rachel