Being a Provider

As many of us have, I grew up in a household of two working parents. I would see them rush around every morning trying to get the kids ready for school while preparing for their days, and then I’d see their frustration when they’d come home to a house that had been driven further into despair by my afternoon activities. In attempts of explaining the frustration of his responsibilities, my dad would seem at times to dwell on the “obligation” to be the provider. I would hear that how the longer and harder he worked would allow him to provide more to the family.

I grew up wanting to become a provider. It is the type of provider that I have become that is different!

I grew up with a strong work ethic. I grew up with the quote that suggests that sleep is overrated, and I lived that way. Even in college, I would take on any job I could find, if it fit into my schedule. I graduated, got married, and started working. During my first year of marriage, I recall systematically turning off the alarm, and reciting “Time to Make the Doughnuts”, as I slept walked to the shower. It began to look like I was eating the doughnuts as fast as I made them and the weight of providing became both mental and physical!

The last couple of years have been tough on so many people and it took finding my way through these hard times to recognize that the best thing that I can provide my family is an attitude. An attitude that allows for concern while remaining confident! Confident that I am doing all I can for my family, while the monetary reality of those efforts are completely out of my control.

My fitness provides that attitude to me, and in return, I provide my family with confidence, pride, and self respect. With those attributes anyone can overcome any obstacle that stands before them.

What do you provide?