Sometimes the work I do feels so insignificant.

It definitely falls into the category of jobs that are hard to explain at a dinner party, a job that does not fit nicely into a box with a label that's easy to comprehend.

I'm used to that part, and I have mostly gotten it down to a few sentences of explanation to where most people can understand and nod along in respect.

And here's the thing; I do know, I believe in my core that my work does matter, that my career choice has impacted our sport in a positive way, that I do important work.

But at times lately, it has felt ridiculous to be encouraging (or honestly, at times pleading with) people to pick up a single piece of trash with me in my trash pickup challenge, when we have so many bigger, scarier, darker challenges arising that are hard to imagine us getting through at all.

Most of the time, we operate within a world where we yell into our own void, seeking confirmation, only looking for what we already agree with, what doesn't confront our own version of reality.

Meanwhile, we rarely encourage open dialogue or allow ourselves to become curious enough to consider all the perspectives in that moment...yes, especially if we disagree.

So me inviting people to pick up trash, swap out ziplock bags for reusable silicone ones, sign up for a gel recycling program, is that doing anything at all?

I remind myself that actually, yes, part of what has gotten us into this situation are the extremes of the world we live in. Pick a side, go all in or don't bother at all, there is one way to view this situation.

I moved into this career path precisely because I wanted to be an environmentalist, to do absolutely everything I could to help people and the planet heal, but knowing that for most people, step one is not going to be calling up their senator and yelling at them.

How could I meet people where they were at? Get them to take some action instead of none, be an advocate or ally for something important to them....instead of slinking away and sticking their fingers in their ears?

I believe in humanity. I believe that many, if not most, people are doing the best they can with their life situation. I believe that most people simply need a place to start and someone to listen to their reality.

Our world is overstimulating, overwhelming, over-everything.

We were never meant to live in a world where we can see things happening to billions of people all over the world every single minute.

Our brains have not evolved to absorb 50 different sources of stimulation or thought starters within the space of a minute, jumping from a video of the stars of Heated Rivalry thriving to a terrifying video that chills us to the core...within half a second.

What we are evolved and ready to do is support our neighbors, our community, our people.

Maybe that means in person, getting involved at our local community level (I went to my first neighborhood monthly meeting this month; that felt like a big step).

Maybe we do remain in gratitude to the technology that allows us to converse with, support, and be there for our community near and far (almost all the people I love most in this world do not live in Chattanooga!). The billionaires who own social media do not want us to communicate in person or spend an hour on a phone call with our loved ones; that doesn't bring in more profits.

Maybe it means bringing forward our curiosity to listen to those we love, especially if their opinions are different to ours. We find a way to, as parenting expert Dr. Becky Kennedy says, to give our most generous interpretation of what we are hearing/seeing/observing.

Don't get me wrong; I am not saying I support or agree with shooting a mother through a car window as she follows her human instinct to drive away from danger. Nor am I saying families should be separated or people thrown to the ground, questions asked later. And as you can imagine, I am not thrilled about the way the health of our planet is being tossed aside, the extinction of entire species being normalized.

What I am saying though, is that we all want to be treated like human beings, want our reality to be real.

And just like picking up a single piece of trash from the ground feels good, so does supporting another human being, listening to someone you love, taking the time and energy to ask another human being, How can I best support you?

Is this going to solve our problems overnight?

No, but I love this post by Natalia Terfa about herbal tea in Minneapolis, that author Priya Parker found and shared.

Makes you think. The comments too.

Big Sur International Marathon is sold out, but we have one bib available if you or someone you know would like to run that race:

Speaking of leading with curiosity, love, and care for community, I really enjoyed this conversation on the Ezra Klein Show with State Representative James Talarico of Texas. It speaks to the heart of religion and how he matches that with his political views. It's well worth a listen.

And with that, I have found it fascinating to see how the Burrito League has taken off. Maybe it is because I am in a city that is often excluded from big events, or because I drive and run by the segment multiple times a day, but this to me is very indicative of what most of us need and crave right now:

Connection. Feeling a part of something positive.

Not sure what the Burrito League is?

In the month of January, cities, towns, heck, maybe even villiages, can become part of this challenge to run as many segment loops as possible. Our Chattanooga Burrito League is a 0.32 mile loop (it's actually more like a triangle!), and currently over 10,000 laps have been run around it.

At first I resisted it. Now I can totally see why this feels like something important. You get to be in community, you can meet new people, you can focus on just one more lap when things feel out of control.

I have only run five laps so far, across multiple days, but I am wondering if maybe I should go out and do a run there. Maybe I will experience something special too.

“There is no power greater for change than a community discovering what it cares about.” - Margaret Wheatley

Thanks to our partner, HydraPak

I will be fully testing out all the HydraPak items at the same time in the next few months (more on that soon!), but one thing I already know, they make the absolute best products for hydration for runners. That is SO true that they actually make products for a lot of the running brands you already know and love. They are trusted.

My fave items for carrying your own Hydration?

The Tempo Pro 400 or 525ml for road runners.

The Velocity 1.5L for long runs or trail races.

The Skyflask Speed 350ml for not carrying too much if you are concerend with carrying weight and for quick refills (with that flip top lid).

And for vest front pockets, the Pocket Flask 500ml.

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Be kind to one another, yourself, and this beautiful planet of ours.

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