Being in the Winner's Circle

Last Saturday, I got to bask in the presence of winners. In the morning, I participated in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. It was amazing. Everyone there was so nice and enthusiastic. Here are my 2 favorite parts from the race:

1. People wear pink papers on their backs saying who they are running/walking for. If they are walking for a breast cancer survivor, it says, "In celebration of [name here]. During the one-mile fun run (okay - it was more of a one-mile fun stroll), I was behind a family. The older woman's paper said, "In celebration of my daughter, Christine." Next to her was a younger woman whose paper read, "In celebration of my sister, Christine." She was holding the hand of little girl beside her. The little girl's paper said, "In celebration of Mom." The "o" in Mom was drawn as a little heart. Winners.
2. When a survivor is about to cross the finish line, race volunteers figure out what his/her name is (I think it's based on their race number) and pass the word onto the announcer. That way, when the breast cancer survivor actually crosses the line, it's announced, "Great job, Anna!" or "Here comes Susan - way to go!" It was great. Winners.

That night, I got to be around a different kind of winner. I went to Frankie's Fun Park in Raleigh with some friends. Right off the bat, my friend Tim hit the jackpot on one of the arcade games. Not once, but twice. It was amazing. The tickets just came pouring out of the machine (it's like Chuck E. Cheese where you get tickets from games and then trade them in for prizes). I screamed. A lot. I was very excited about my vicarious win.


So what do these two things have in common? It's about finding joy in what you do. Everyone was so optimistic and happy at the race. Despite the obvious difficulties the families were going through, they came out and supported their loved ones. And sure, it was just a pile of tickets at Frankie's, but sometimes it's important to be excited about the little things in life so you can handle the curve balls that come your way.