Happy National Twins Day/Weekend to my twin brother Don, and to my twin daughters Molly and Megan. My brother and I went to Kindergarten in Watertown, going to Roosevelt School, back in 1970. We then moved to SF the following year and grew up there. I was attracted back to Watertown after all those years ago, coming back in 1994 to begin practicing medicine at Brown Clinic. Lots of memories over those years of things we did growing up.
When you are an identical twin, you tend to stand out in a crowd. The thing I loved the most was that there was always somebody to do something with. You never had to be alone. Sometimes that is both good and bad, but mostly good! Don lives in Parker, SD, where he is a Lutheran minister, having previously taught elementary/special education for many years. We will still have people see him in Watertown, or me in Parker, and think they are seeing the other one! Some things never change!
There are still many similarities, especially if one of us wears glasses versus contacts! But one thing is still for sure…there will always be a bond with my twin brother like no other. We are like 120 miles away, and sometimes this seems like a different country. We both are busy with family and our lives, that we don’t spend nearly as much time together as we used too.
This is the most recent picture of the two of us. Back in May we were in SF for the Breast Cancer run/walk. He ran this one, I walked. Still always great to do things together…we just need to make more time for it in the future! Then I was lucky enough to be a Dad of twins as well. My girls though are not identical. They too were always an attraction wherever we went with them, right from the beginning!
They were a handful right out of the blocks! They were our first kids, and we did not know what having one was like, so it might as well have been two! It was never a dull moment. Watching them grow up I saw so many similarities with how things were with my brother. Once again, you always have a friend, somebody to do something with, yet with them not being identical, they had a little more freedom of trying to be their own individual. Again, both good and bad. They also still had somebody to get into trouble with as well!
Some of those days are still kind of a blur with how busy everything was. I would not trade it for anything!
The smiles still keep coming. I have their picture when they were babies hanging in my office: Why was I chosen to be a Father of twins! It refers to having two to take care of, two to get in trouble, two to get out of the mud, etc. But the bottom line was that at the end of the day, there were two to love! That is why I was chosen to be a Father of twins!
They have grown up fast. Really fast! In two short weeks Molly will be getting married, and Megan will be her Maid of Honor! Always together…always there for each other! That is what does not change about being a twin! Don and the rest of my family will also be in Watertown for this as well! Twins are unique, and I can definitely say twins are special…I may be a little biased here, but that is ok! We are all still active, and remember to exercise. My brother and I have run together, gone to do a marathon together, and the girls ran their first half marathon last year. They will all be here in the next 10 days, and we will be running the Hump Day 5K on August 14…as a family! I can’t wait!!!! Keep moving everybody!
It does not take long for the week to just get crazy. Some days seem endless, with a multitude of things to have to get done. It just never seems like there is enough time in the day. But, we all get 24 hours. Planning, and prioritizing, need to come into play. Saturday was a great example of how things can be when the weather cooperates. It was just a nice day to sit out in the shade, and relax. Relax, and let your mind wander. Let your body wind down and forget about all of the other commitments in life, and just take it easy. This week was actually very good for that as well.
One of the days that I took Zeus for a walk early in the morning, it was actually a little cool compared to the weather here lately. The fog was really thick over the lake and the golf course, and it was quiet. It just was a good time to relax and think…and Soothing…
My usual morning route is going by the lake. When the winds are calm, it is one of my favorite places to be. The birds are chirping. It is a great time to unwind, relax, and plan for the day. I would not trade it for anything!
Remember this! It is easy to get caught up in all of the pressures of life, but you have to keep yourself in mind as well. Take a deep breath, and just relax! It is amazing how much easier it is for things to fall into place when you remember this.
One of the other mornings this week it had been raining earlier, and a perfect rainbow came out over the lake. When you get scenery like this, you forget you are even out exercising. There is no comparison when it comes to where I would rather exercise at: outside, and along the lake, versus indoors on a treadmill. Indoors really does feel like work!
How true is this? The weekends just fly by, and the week drags on. So, make the most of your work day week, or week in general, and get out and move and enjoy the scenery. Let your mind wander, and think. You never know wheat ideas will develop, or how your plans can change…for the good!
So take a deep breath, start getting ready each day, and just go. Go exercise, but go and relax too. Here Zeus is helping Sarah stretch before we went running on Saturday. Even he knows he needs to learn to relax, and if you do, you will learn to enjoy life more! Take in what life all has to offer. All the adventures, new things to see, new things to experience. No two days are the same. Take advantage of them all!
You know there are going to be things that come up that are stressful, and just down right crazy. Accept it! Plan on it! Develop a plan for how you are going to deal with it, and if things are anticipated, then you know how to deal with it, and it won’t be such a big deal! Get in the exercise routine, and learn to go with the flow. Enjoy life, and appreciate all it has to offer. None of us know everything, so there is always something to learn. There is always something else to experience as well. Strive to Survive! Take a deep breath, and Just Relax, and enjoy the ride! Keep moving everybody!
There are always challenges to trying to exercise. But, even more, there are excuses. I have made plenty of them myself as well. You can try to come up with anything feasible, at least in your mind, not to go exercise. But I have found that once I get going, and then especially when I get done, I feel much better, and I am glad I did it! It needs to become a habit to get to this point. It can’t feel like a chore all of the time, or you will never do it. There are definitely those days when exercise feels like a chore. It is inevitable. But there are more good days than bad days. Yesterday was a good example. It was the Run Around Kampeska Half Marathon. It was delayed for an hour due to lightening, but then still rained through the majority of the race. That did not stop these people.
I am still coming back slow with the running, otherwise I would have been out there too. I was relegated to transport, water carrier, and photographer. I would rather be one of the runners! There are those other times when we have to contend with the heat.
You have to time your exercise, and go when it is cooler out. But, you also have to come up with creative ways to stay cool!
I could say Sarah was just going to help me cool off by throwing me in the lake, but I would be lying. I will never say no to her again!!! Hee Hee! But before you know it, it will be back to the cold and snow again!
You can still exercise outside, you just have to dress for it, and be more creative. Sometimes though, you just outright give up, and surrender!
One thing is for sure, it is always more enjoyable exercising with other people. It helps take your mind off things. It is still nice at times to work out on your own, but the group activities is much more fun. There are days when you just wonder why you even bother.
You can be so exhausted afterwards that you wonder why you even bothered. But, then later, when you are doing other activities, you have more energy, feel stronger, and have more endurance. Like I said, the good days still outweigh the bad days. We all want days when we feel like this:
So, go after it. If you are not exercising you are just falling back on another excuse. Make a decision, and go for it. Enjoy life to its fullest. Don’t take things for granted. I am finding out your health is not always going to be there. Control what you can, and then learn to deal what can’t be changed. You can still live your life to the fullest. Appreciate what you have when you do! Keep moving everybody!
This was our team yesterday doing the Kampeska Mini Triathlon. Team mates Sarah, and Paula Nurnburg. That is how we got our team name: “Burg”er Meister Meister “Bergers”, as there were 2 Reiffenbergers. It was a great time. We all got to participate, and this was the first time for us as a team. Usually we do the whole thing ourselves, but I have to not push it that much yet. We even got second place overall for teams competing!
We were a little worried at first, as the sun was out, and it was going to be hot! Paula was going to swim the 1/4 mile, Sarah would ride the bike 14 miles, and I was running the 5k.
The “Burg”er Meister was coming out of the water, and heading into the transition zone to pass off the chip timer to Sarah, the first of the Meister “Bergers”.
Then Sarah took off on her bike!
Then, I had to wait for her to ride around the lake, planning on anywhere from 45-50 minutes.
Then she came across, and it was time for the exchange between the two Meister “Bergers”! We had this down man! Then, I took off!
I actually felt pretty good on the 5k run, and it was my fastest time yet since everything has gone on for me in March. Finished in 24:30…over 4 minutes faster than the Freedom run 10 days ago! The clouds had moved in, and kept the sun away, which helped out with the heat factor immensely. It was still hot, but would have been much worse if the sun stayed out. I was smiling for the camera and giving the thumbs up coming in towards the finish!
Of course, Sarah had to come out the last 1/4 mile to run in with me, and make sure I was doing ok. I won’t be able to hide anything from her. It did feel good to have a good run again. Hopefully this keeps improving. I know for sure I will at least keep making forward progress as long as Sarah is beside me. We had a great race! And thanks Paula for helping to make up the rest of the team! The “Burg”er Meister Meister “Bergers” were a force to be reckoned with! Keep moving everybody!
Well, it has been a busy week with the 4th of July. Lots of things to celebrate, with freedom at the top of the list. Freedom to choose as we want, and live as we want. Freedom to spend time with who we want. Freedom to choose things in our lives, both good and bad. It started with the Freedom Run/Walk put on by DASH here in Watertown on Tuesday night.
It was a 5k run/walk. Calm winds, but really hot. It takes a while to get used to the heat, especially when we get it all at once. But never the less, a fun event. A lot of us try to dress up as patriotic as we could. Sarah and I each managed to win first in our age category. Thankfully, there were not many in our age category! Ha!
At least I am out running again. 5k has pretty much been my limit here, so will just have to see how time goes. It just feels good to get outside and do something again! Thursday morning, on the 4th of July, our run club met at 7AM for a patriotic run before everybody got busy for the day with their plans, family activities, fireworks, etc.
Another great morning to go out for a run, and celebrate! So, remember to celebrate those things in your life that you appreciate, that you have worked hard for, and that have that special meaning to you. Family, friends, health. You don’t really appreciate what you always have, until you don’t have it anymore. Live life to the fullest. Don’t waste time, days, memories.
Keep working on your own health by trying to do more exercise, and watching your diet. But, also spend time taking care of your mental health. Spend time with family and friends, and enjoy the memories that will come with it. Those are the memories that will mean something…and not only for yourself, but for somebody else as well. So celebrate well, and take care of yourself as well. Keep moving everybody!
