Embracing Resilience and Community: Reflecting on 2023

Originally written December 29, 2023

As we approach the end of 2023, I still find myself very grateful. Even as Candace B. Rape and I stood together watching the fire actively destroy both the building and business we had poured our lives into, my God's honest perspective was "It is what it is."

This journey has reinforced the importance of having and maintaining perspective amidst chaos. As the Stoics teach, it's about separating the things in our life into two categories; 1) what we can control, and 2) what we can't control.

Putting all effort into those things we can indeed control and casting what we can't control away from us is the only way to stay resilient. We can steer our own lives, it is not true that circumstance dictates our trajectory. Matthew 6:34 was my favorite first before this, and it's now extended it's lead even further.

This next year is not just about rebuilding a gym; it's about nurturing a community, fostering resilience, and celebrating the collective human spirit; of what we can accomplish together. Every challenge faced this year was an opportunity to grow, to learn, and to come together stronger than before.

I may personally not be the most active and loud on social media, but I am confident our collective effort and what's to come in the next few short months will speak very very loudly, very soon.

Thank you, each one of you, for being an integral part of our story. Your support, encouragement, patience and commitment have been the silver lining in a year filled with many challenges. Here's to a future that's bright, hopeful, and filled with endless possibilities. Let's step into it together, stronger and more united than ever.