Well here we are, another week, another posting. Life continues to move along in fast forward, and I find it hard to believe that we are nearing mid-August, which means a new school year, Labor Day right around the corner, and for those of us lucky enough to work for the Federal Government in DC, slightly less crowded commutes as families try desperately to get in last-minute summer vacations and Congressmen and Senators flee home for last-minute campaigning (or rounds of golf).
And so, exactly 3 months after my Half Ironman, I continue my observations on my thoughts on the meaning of life...
THE TOP 10 THINGS I HAVE LEARNED ABOUT LIFE SINCE THE HALF IRONMAN CONTINUES
#5 "Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some." - Robert Fulghum Ever since I was a young girl - so young that I can't remember how young I was - I wanted to be just like my dad and practice law. For those of you who have not been lucky enough to meet my dad, he is an incredibly accomplished attorney, but more importantly, a great, kind and understanding person and a wonderful father.
As I progressed in school, I never seriously considered doing anything other than following in the footsteps of my own Atticus Finch. So I studied hard (and let's be honest, played hard), and found myself in the first year law class at the University of Virginia in the fall of 1996. 
Interestingly enough, my father actually did not want me to become a lawyer. Of course he was very proud when I was accepted to UVa, but he did not like where he saw the practice of law going, i.e., he said it was becoming a business rather than a profession. At the time I did not know what he meant. Now, I most assuredly do.
"The law is a jealous mistress." That is a comment a friend's father made to me at my college graduation. He was an attorney in California, and I can't remember the context in which he made this statement, but it stuck in my head. Fast forward 6 years, and I was experiencing that jealous mistress and the business of law first hand. As an associate at one of the largest law firms in the world, I found myself regularly working 18-hour days, pulling all-nighters nearly every week, and catching cat naps in the office in the sleeping bag that I stashed under my desk. I traveled frequently, often on last-minute notice, and I rarely had time to do anything other than work or complain about work. I was miserable.
And I was so not the Kathleen I had always known. Growing up, my parents had encouraged me to experience all that I could in life, and while I always worked hard in school, I also played tennis, violin and piano, spent time with friends and family, ran track, traveled and enjoyed a full and balanced life.
Ultimately, I chose to leave the practice of law and join the ever growing group I affectionately call "Recovering Attorneys," because the law was the jealous mistress that aided in the demise of my marriage and it was a business about making money rather than a profession about helping those in need. In December 2005, I moved to DC to begin my career in public service, and I vowed to make time each day for friends and fun and exercise and other non-work activities.
Four and a half years later, I continue to strive for that balance, usually successfully, and I am happier than I have ever been. Certainly, there are days when I have to work late (I have even had a few all-nighters in my current position), and there are days that I probably should work but end up spending them hanging out with friends. But overall, each day in my life includes a little work + a little exercise + a little time with friends and my dogs = a lot of joy. 
It is so easy to get caught up in one aspect of life. What I have learned first hand is that no one thing is as important to happiness as balancing the many things in our lives that complete who we are. Euripides, the great ancient Greek playwright, advised that "[t]he best and safest thing is to keep a balance in your life, acknowledge the great powers around us and in us. If you can do that, and live that way, you are really a wise man."
Be wise.
Until next time...
