First off, I’ve been waiting (like that astronaut I referenced to earlier) for the cyberlink to ping ping ping and make sure that my blog and emails went out, and most importantly to hear from those I love that they got my update and I’m ok.  Done and done.  And yeah, tears in my eyes over the amazing love and support, and even from random stranger Sonia who is no longer a stranger!  

First off – what a MAGNIFICENT day so far.  Talk about adding deeper, different and colorful layers to this whole experience…..from cheering the starting line and watching in amazement as they made their way up the steepest cliff/rock/curse word in my book, to off roading through the desert, meeting so many of the locals working the RTP camp, and watching them build it!  Wow – such joy, happiness, and absolute efficiency creating a city from where there was none.  Incredible to watch…..until I was asked to work and couldn’t say yes quickly enough.  Bill (WA) and Daniella (Zurich) and I whisked off to a new water point 1/2 way between checkpoint 3 and 4.  UNBELIEVABLE HEAT today (omg),  It was absolutely thrilling to tend to the front runners as they came through – and to see the leaders come in to the finish before heading out, running the whole 28miles in under 4 hours was astounding.  Pouring water everywhere —- I can’t believe they didn’t melt.  If it wasn’t yesterday, it would have been today that would have done me in.  This is extreme extreme.  BUT, I am SO glad I went with my gut and am staying on……The rest of this week is already turning in to something else and I feel free, happy, and like the world’s colors are even brighter.

Lots of thoughts running through my head about withdrawing, especially with so many following and wanting to convey the whys, the perspective and the experience.  For me it’s never been about the medals, the PR’s, where I am in the pack….but the preparation, the anticipation, and the adventure as I meet so many people.  The gut call to withdraw immediately followed with “of course I’m staying!”.  There’s a reason I’m here – I worked so hard to get to this point, why would I walk away because something didn’t quite go the way I thought it would?  I think the philosophy of “There is no failure” misses the point, you are supposed to pursue whatever you are doing with 100% commitment, that should go without saying…..and one of the delicious gifts of life is that you can continue to grow, change and learn.  Break ceilings and test limits to figure out who you are NOW and what you want to push forward to become.  (These races are a GREAT place to make that happen – from lead up right on through).  And when something does not go quite the way you planned, it is how you handle that by which you are judged (and judged is not quite the right word); but do handle it with grace and patience and enthusiasm for the next steps.  All the cliche’s of “Make Lemonade” and “Recalibrate” come from real experience, which says a lot.  You never know when that unexpected detour results in something truly extraordinary – and why would you want to miss out on that? So with no fear, I will keep taking those steps forward.  As for the Gobi Desert – I liken this to magical places like Petra, Jordan, Cappadocia, Turkey and the underwater caves of Andros, Bahamas (among several “happy” spots) that I’ve been lucky enough to experience.  I wish I had the proper words or was able to paint a picture to properly convey the air, the feeling, the zing in the air.  The history, the people, all of it……I’m so so grateful to be able to drink this all in.

I’m heading back to the camp finish line to whoop and holler and help those coming through.  It’s going to be a very long day with the final cut off.  No doubt the whole camp will come out to pull those people in and refill them with energy and love.  Our camp tonite is truly in the desert…..beautiful as the moon still greets us in the morning and the vistas could be stared at for hours on end…… much inspiration for my mending brain and cleaning of mental laundry.  Next up is “recalibrating” (sic) my talk at Columbia U to a bunch of young entrepreneurs who are perhaps stuck in the “failure is no option” mindset (I don’t wish to assume) so my themes from my recent lessons will most certainly be woven in.  This could be a whole new “thing”.

Thanks all for the emails and blog comments.  I feel the hugs royally!

Rob:  the baddest baddass of all – thank you…..LU2.  I think Mongolia would welcome some great jazz….ahem.  You need to see this.

Ella:  LOVE your first day update!  A cake?  Wow.  You are in.  And good luck to Jordan! (Thanks to his parents for blog comments!)

M/D:  You know me…..and yep, coming back with lots of new stories and energy. I can’t wait to share.  LU2

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