"Thank You"

When Erin and I spent some time at a retreat in San Diego last winter, we listened to a talk by a respected Navy Seal Captain named Bob Schoultz. His talk centered around a few topics: personal ethos, reasons for living; legacy; death. Heavy concepts, I know…but as we celebrate our first full year at CrossFit Kells today, and our time spent with all of you, we are a little reflective!

One of the exercises Schoultz walked us through was the concept of writing your own obituary. He has done it a few times in his life, and he encouraged every person in the room to do it. He discussed how powerful an exercise it is, particularly if you dedicate to it the time and attention it deserves (btw I have yet to do it myself; it is on my 2016 To Do list with a completion date of 6/3/16). 

Having done plenty of research on the topic himself, Captain Schoultz dug into one very important lesson/take away from all of the books he has read and interviews he has conducted on the topic…and that is the fact that we all really only have two commodities available to us in life that really matter. 

Time and relationships. 

If you look into deathbed chronicling, stoic wisdom or just good old fashioned life & death philosophy, you will find that very few (if any) individuals give nary a flying f*#k-all about any business deals, paychecks, cars or bank accounts when it is their time to go. When people stare into the abyss, the only things that own their attention are time (how they spent it and how to get more of it) and relationships (who they spent that time with and who have they impacted in their time on earth). 

Time and relationships are the only true currencies that exist...or at least matter. 

Which brings us back to CFK and all of you.

We love CrossFit. When Peter, Erin and I decided to open CFK a year ago, it was because we believed in CrossFit's potential to impact. Impact people's physical health, their state of mind, their quality of life, and yes their relationships. 

But as we have said before...it's not about teaching and/or doing pull-ups and squats. You can do that in your own backyard. 

Don't get me wrong; the system we know as CrossFit is unbelievably effective and the best approach to fitness that we have ever seen. But what makes it truly and uniquely special? 

You. 

When I look around and take stock of the relationships that CrossFit has fostered in my life and the impact it has had on our community, I am blown away. While we beat the ever-loving-hell out of ourselves on a relatively consistent basis, it is more about CrossFit's greater impact. How we impact each other and the community around us. 

Consider CFK. Our community at large has come together on MULTIPLE occasions to work for/contribute to various charities. We have helped each other through competitions and in-house challenges. Presently, we are collectively dominating the delightfully sadistic Open workouts concocted by the evil one they call "Castro". 

And what about on an individual level?

The member who has lost 70lbs and is no longer a Type II diabetic. Their Type II diabetes is gone. 

The members who are/were pregnant, annihilating preconceived ideas about what fitness means to pregnant or postpartum women. 

The member whose primary care physician keeps calling them in disbelief to congratulate them on their improvements in weight loss and blood pressure. 

The members who have shed tears after witnessing themselves accomplish something physically that they literally never even conceived of doing. 

The members who barely resemble the versions of themselves that started a year ago (physically or emotionally). 

The members who have embraced this community as their own and who treat everyone that walks through the front door as a friend. 

…the list goes on an on for us. But the point is that CrossFit is about YOU. All of YOU are what make it an incredibly special entity. All of YOU are the reason we opened a year ago. And we consider ourselves lucky to spend the amount of time with you that we do, and to have the relationships with you that we do. 

I know I speak for Erin and Peter when I say that it is not lost on us how incredibly lucky we are to be surrounded by this group of people. We care very sincerely about each of you, and are extremely grateful that you are in our lives. The term "gratitude" doesn't quite cover it. 

Cheers to Year One in the books, and to many more to come...

-Mike, Erin & Peter