Yesterday was my birthday. It was a day of mourning and celebration. 

I survived another decade on this planet. Yeah!

If I make it another 20 years, I’ll surpass my father’s age when he died.

If I can make it another 54, I’ll beat Bob.

Uncle Bob, mentioned in this post, died as I was getting up to celebrate my birthday. My oldest son, an inquisitive, smarty pants who likes being a mad scientist who loves Tsum Tsums, is named after him. I’m not sure if it’s coincidence or the magic of the name, but he’s as kind and friendly as his older namesake.

Two deaths in the family in about three months. I feel emotionally and physically drained. So, my marathon training plan is on hold while I try to figure out whether I can actually do a marathon that is scheduled on a work day.

If anything this year has been a reminder of how fragile life is. You never know when your time is up. It could be 50 years from now, or tomorrow.

Live life to the fullest and love as much as possible. Both of these fine men who I admire — Kevin and Bob — did that and then some.

The mountain kids and I had a great time volunteering on my birthday. It was something I was raised to do and Bob volunteered as much as possible. I hope to get a chance to write about it later this week.

One of the Mountain Kids hands out medals at a recent half marathon. Courtesy of Tristate Racer