In Tribute to Travis

"I don't know if I would have made it if he hadn't done that, sir. It made me embarrassed to be afraid when he wasn't afraid. I guess that's leadership, sir." - A Sense of Honor

This quote about leadership stood out the second I read it. I've saved many quotes from this book not knowing if I'd ever use 'em but that wasn't the goal. Collecting intelligent and inspiring verbiage was.

I have a reason to use it now and that reason has a name. His name is Travis.

Travis, for those that are yet to meet him, is someone that came into our lives when he joined Tribute Strength a year ago. However, joining TS doesn't make him the "reason".

This is the "reason"...

It will be so worth it though. Its one year. It isn't that bad for the rest of my life. I make that trade." - Travis

Travis CrossFits while carrying an oxygen tank. Travis struggles to walk 50' without stopping. Travis has Cystic Fibrosis...Travis is getting a lung transplant.

Read that paragraph over again and read it slower this time. Comprehend it, let it sink in and now read his quote again.

Travis is facing a fight for his life on a daily basis. It's not some 12 minute AMRAP or some long chipper. He's not fabricating some inspirational story to motivate himself to "get another round in". This is real life. Life with consequences that matter more than your time or weight on the chalkboard.

Yet when I spoke to Travis about this pending and immediate need for transplant surgery all he focused on was the fact that he "will be running miles" a year from now. Overlooking the major surgery he's embarking on, the 3 months in complete 100% isolation post-surgery or the 3 months spent in limited isolation after that.

Remember his quote I told you to read over again? Well, read it over one more time...

Personally speaking there are more people in this world that end up disappointing me than impressing me. With that being said, there are certain character traits in people that not only impress me but even more so inspire me.

Well, Travis has them. In spades. And I'm embarrassed to be afraid of anything now. And that's leadership.

So from all of us at Tribute Strength here's to your incredible outlook, attitude, and a brand new set of lungs. In September 2017 we'll run miles together when we complete "Travis" in tribute to you, sir.

Give A Fuck

Am I the only one that has had enough of this “No Fucks Given” society we seem to be living in? The shirts, the attitude, the culture of ego. All of it. It’s all a self-centered, cocky and ironically transparent mentality that’s the root of societies next generation of problems.  

If more people actually gave a fuck we might actually have the peace most of us mutually seek.

If we had less people proudly proclaiming “Zero fucks given” and more people actually giving a shit about their actions and words then believe it or not we’d all be better off.

Relationships might have a longer lifespan. Honor and integrity may actually be values of the present and not just of lore.  

These people like to arrogantly claim they enjoy being alone. They act like the world is beneath them and their “lone wolf” way of living is somehow above the rest of us. As if they know better. As if they somehow have the antidote to a happy life but won’t release it to the rest of us lolely optimistic anthropologic types. So instead of sharing their incredible wealth of knowledge they just, well, don’t give a fuck.

Well I cry foul. I say bullshit.

The only reason you claim to give zero fucks is because giving a fuck takes effort.

Giving a fuck means rendering yourself vulnerable. Giving a fuck means putting yourself out there for criticism and having to accept it. Giving a fuck means caring about others as much or more than you care about yourself. Giving a fuck means opening your soul up to others for evaluation and analysis.

Giving a fuck is hard, emotional, selfless and sometimes scary…and that's why you pretend to not give a fuck. 

Give A Fuck

Am I the only one that has had enough of this “No Fucks Given” society we seem to be living in? The shirts, the attitude, the culture of ego. All of it. It’s all a self-centered, cocky and ironically transparent mentality that’s the root of societies next generation of problems.  

If more people actually gave a fuck we might actually have the peace most of us mutually seek.

If we had less people proudly proclaiming “Zero fucks given” and more people actually giving a shit about their actions and words then believe it or not we’d all be better off.

Relationships might have a longer lifespan. Honor and integrity may actually be values of the present and not just of lore.  

These people like to arrogantly claim they enjoy being alone. They act like the world is beneath them and their “lone wolf” way of living is somehow above the rest of us. As if they know better. As if they somehow have the antidote to a happy life but won’t release it to the rest of us lolely optimistic anthropologic types. So instead of sharing their incredible wealth of knowledge they just, well, don’t give a fuck.

Well I cry foul. I say bullshit.

The only reason you claim to give zero fucks is because giving a fuck takes effort.

Giving a fuck means rendering yourself vulnerable. Giving a fuck means putting yourself out there for criticism and having to accept it. Giving a fuck means caring about others as much or more than you care about yourself. Giving a fuck means opening your soul up to others for evaluation and analysis.

Giving a fuck is hard, emotional, selfless and sometimes scary…and that's why you pretend to not give a fuck.