Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot – August 2nd

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot – August 2nd

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot – August 2nd 150 150 Matt Kenney

Dr. Kenney’s Friday 5 Spot

On Fridays I like to share experiences I’ve had during the week with patients and in my personal life that I’ve found significant.  I like to share them in hopes that you might find value in them and have something resonate with you in your life.

Something I believe.  A friend asked me this week if something recently in the news offended me.  My response was that while it was offensive, I was personally not offended.  Generally, if you give someone long enough, they will express to you in some fashion how they truly feel about you.  Once that becomes apparent, it is your choice how you handle it and mine is to never allow it to have power over me.

Personally, I am not the type to rant and rave, take to social media, or complain about the actions or beliefs of others.  Instead, I use the information to guide how I spend my time, money, and effort.  I never demand that others feel exactly as I do or belittle their viewpoints.  Thus, when people try to do this to me, I simply shrug it off and let my wallet and actions do the talking.  I find this more effective than becoming outraged and sidetracked in my life.

Something I loved.  As I was leaving Costco with my younger children over the weekend, my little boy told me all the things he wanted to buy “when we were rich.”  Then he asked me, “are we rich yet?”  I told him that unfortunately we were not and joked that daddy would have to adjust a lot of people for us to become so.  He pondered this for a second, then told me “Ok, well when you go back to work you should start working harder.”  Some parents may have been offended by this, but I loved it!

One of my favorite sayings is “nobody cares, work harder.”  This appeals to me because it’s a way of removing all excuses from an equation and placing the onus on finding some path to success.  As a parent, I was proud that my son said this because I want my kids to grow up feeling that anything is possible and that excuses will only hinder them.  When my boy made his comment to me, he was not being sarcastic or snide at all.  He was merely expressing that he felt his dad was capable and could accomplish anything.  This attitude is something worth remembering that we should all utilize in our lives.

A great reminder.  Last week I was out on a run when a man walking his dog suddenly crossed into my path.  His dog lunged at me, and as I twisted my body to react to this I felt/heard a huge pop in my knee.  As a chiropractor, I know what a good “pop” is and what is not, and this was the latter.  I could barely put weight on my leg as I embarrassingly limped home.  Though I was frustrated, I quickly got over it and felt grateful.  It occurred to me that for all the times I was training and competing in 100-mile races and ultra endurance events over the last decade, I never had an injury that kept me from doing so.  Thus, if I was going to have something happen, I was glad it was now and not then.

This whole thing reminded me of the importance of gratitude.  Too often, when things are going well, we are not thankful and feel entitled.  Then, when something eventually goes wrong, we say “why me?.”  Right now, as you read this, you could easily stop and produce fifty things that you are profoundly grateful for that you rarely take time to consider.  I like to begin my days immediately thinking of what I’m grateful for but had gotten away from that practice recently.  As odd as it may sound, getting hurt reminded me of how important this is and got me going again.

Something that made me happy.  On Sunday afternoon, my wife and I took our young kiddos to the park.  It was one hundred degrees, and the park was empty except for two young boys and their sister selling lemonade.  We bought some ourselves and I was thrilled to see them make dozens of sales over the next hour or so.  All the people pulling up in their cars could have easily driven another mile to the grocery store and bought lemonade in greater quantity and more cost effectively.  However, they purchased it from the kids because of a desire to support them.  I would also argue that many did so because of the nostalgia of a time when they had a stand of their own in their younger years.

In life, we will all encounter people that remind us of ourselves or times we went through.  When this happens, give yourselves and them the blessing of supporting them.  Perhaps that is financial, emotionally, a small piece of advice, or some words of encouragement.  Seeing people happily buying lemonade from kids reminded me of how amazing it can be to make a small detour out of our way to help someone.  A small action from you can carry great weight to someone that was once where you were.

Some quotes I Love.

“If you don’t have scars to show, you’ve never pushed yourself hard enough.”

“A man who is willing to suffer in order to win is unbeatable.”

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