Living the Dream
How many of us would be able to say that we are living our dreams?
How many of us would be bold enough to state publicly that we were living our dreams even if we believed we were?
Do we just wake up one day and realize that we have finally reached the dream we had for our lives?
Does self-acualization take planning?
Does it take determination?
Does it take hard work?
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| Trista in competition. |
I've been thinking about these questions ever since reading the article that was published in today's newspaper about my step-daughter, Trista Wessely Francis.
Seeing Trista recognized in print made us very happy because she deserves to be admired for all that she has accomplished as an athlete.
I must say she has made her daddy very proud.
This girl has always made me happy because of her spunk, and let me tell you, it takes a lot of spunk to do all that she has done.
I don't want to quote the entire article, I will just give you the link below, and hope you will read about her.
Here are the beginning lines from the article that was so well written by Jeff Letoffsky. Thank you, Jeff for doing such a great job with your writing on this newspaper article!
As a self-made, world-renowned triathlete and coach, Francis, 41, has reached the pinnacle of her sport and understands where she's come from and where she's going.
"I feel so blessed. I live the dream every day," said Francis, who lives in Highlands Ranch in Denver. "I get to work with amazing athletes whether they are getting off the couch wanting to get healthier or somebody striving to be an Olympic champion."
Trista, a certified and licensed athletic trainer, got her BS degree in sports medicine at BYU. She married soon after graduation and began a family. Once her children where in school, she began running again. She started running as a child with her father. Not one to shirk a challenge, she decided to do what it took to become a triathlete. That meant she had to learn to swim. Before long, because of her hard work and determination, she was being recognized when she competed. Then, she started coaching others and started her own company. And then, she became a member of the Timex Multisport Team, 2009-2012.
She didn't just dream the dream and wake up one day to see that dream actualized. It took a lot of training, a lot of early morning workouts; it took focus, and it took even coming back from injuries. Like her father, she is one to work very hard at whatever she does. I think she got that work ethic from him.
A few years ago, Trista and her dad went to Upstate New York for a competition.
Can you tell how proud he is of her?
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| Train your mind Train your heart Train your body Jim wearing a shirt from Trista's company iTz Multisport Endurance Coaching, LLC. |
I love this photo that Trista's dad caught of her just before the swim portion of the race near Ithaca.
Trista is in the center of the photo. She has on long sleeves and is wearing a look that says, "I am focused."
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| The rewards come after the hard work |
Here is another photo of a very proud papa.
Jim is watching Trista compete in 2011 Special Triathlon World Championships in China via the web.
She ran where we all watched Olympic runners run in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China.
I remember he just kept saying, "I'll be."
I'm not sure he could even believe it all.
Jim is proud of Trista for many things.
If the truth be told, he most proud of her as a wife and mother.
She has a truly awesome husband. We love Greg like a son.
She has three active, sweet, accomplished, and very beautiful daughters.
In this recently taken photo, you see the Francis family on a hike in the mountains near their cabin near Frisco, Colorado.
They have all reached a pinnacle of success on this hike. I bet they weren't even winded.
To Trista, I say,
You go girl.
You keep on climbing.
You keep on going after your dreams.
You have a family who loves and supports you.
Life may not always be lived on the mountaintops, but I have no doubt that you will also conquer any valley into which you may enter.
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| Trista, Daphnie, Demi, Darby, Greg Summer 2012 |
I am proud of you.
I love you.
Love,
Sally
What an inspiration. You are right to be proud of her.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful tribute to a woman who deserves these accolades. From what I read she seems very proud of all that she has accomplished and has worked very hard to deserve that pride. How great that Jim has gotten to share in so much with her.
ReplyDeleteTrista sounds like an amazing person. Wow. I think she dreamed bigger dreams than I did, but when you led off with that question, I answered "yes!". I am living my dream. It didn't come easily for me either, but it involved hard work and determination of a different kind.
ReplyDeleteI would be interesting to know how many ordinary people are living their dream.
Big congratulations to Trista!
ReplyDeleteWhat a terrific lady, and how proud you all must be of her accomplishments! She is a wonderful role model for her girls, for sure.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this beautiful story, Sally.
I love this blog about Trista. I see that Dad is not the only one proud of her!! :)) Sally is extremely proud, too...with all rights to be!
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Jackie
Hi Sally, What a wonderful tribute to Trista... She obviously is a remarkable young lady. It's no wonder that Jim and you are so proud of her...
ReplyDeleteYes---we all need to live out our dreams. I know that I am ---but it took me lots of years to get here.....
Hugs,
Betsy
Oh wow! Wow! WOW! I had to call Art over to look at this. She's not only super accomplished, but gorgeous to boot. She is certainly an inspiration to us all. Perhaps one day she'll come here to do the Iron Man.
ReplyDeleteNice tribute to an amazing woman who had dreams and then set about to accomplish them. Good for her! My dreams these days has to do with living internationally and traveling to other countries. Oh, and running marathons and half marathons as a senior. I love my life!
ReplyDeleteCongrats to your step-daughter!
ReplyDeleteI think it's important to have dreams and goals to make those dreams come true!
What a sweet person she is, Sally. You can see it in her face. No wonder you are so proud of her and her accomplishments. I think I am also living my own dream, which never had any competition in it, but is a happy existence sharing my life with my partner.
ReplyDeleteShe really is to be admired. That is a lot of hard work and you do her proud with this post.
ReplyDeleteI just got home from my 3-days-a-week, one-hour workout and thought I had a major achievement under my belt:). Your step-daughter has snapped me back to reality. Wow! I do admire her for her drive, her motivation, her determination. Amazing! She deserves all the praise she has earned.
ReplyDeleteYay! What an incredible inspiration!!! Thank you so much for this lovely tribute to a person who is making her dreams come true!
ReplyDeleteShe is truly amazing. Jim's pride shows in his face. Your post clearly show your pride. Yep, she just may have it all, including great support.
ReplyDeleteBeing comfortably retired in decent health with the love of family and friends is kind of living my dream right now. My aim was a lot lower.
What a lovely tribute post!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to a woman, who really deserves congratulations. :-)
"Auntie sezzzzzz..." :-)
what an inspiration
ReplyDeleteTrista is truly an inspiration. As an old roommate of hers, I know this is truly her dream. I love that girl!
ReplyDeleteDear Sally, The following line from your post is worth a Pulitzer Prize: "Life may not always be lived on the mountaintops, but I have no doubt that you will also conquer any valley into which you may enter."
ReplyDeletePeace.
What an amazing woman! Such a great tribute to her, Sally. She is certainly an inspiration--not all of us long to be athletes, but her determination and success show that if you put your mind to something, you can accomplish it.
ReplyDeleteI just love reading your posts, Sally! What a great inspiration! You have a way of writing that pulls out the personality of your subjects, and makes us know them!
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed getting to know the members of your family through your blog. What a marvelous group, and your love shines through for each of them.
No wonder you are so proud. sandie
ReplyDeleteStories like this, that share the amazing accomplishments of women, their guts, determination and drive, always inspire me and Trista's story is no exception. All that, plus being a wonderful person/wife/mother -- I'm not surprised so many are proud of her. I am in awe.
ReplyDeleteTrista is an incredible inspiration, as is your writing about her. I'm sure all the love being shared in this family has to be a factor in how successful she is as well. Thank you so much for sharing this story.
ReplyDeleteWOW!! What a role model. Thank you for sharing her story here.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to Trista, and kudos to you for your post!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing this wonderful post and article about your dear, Trista. She really is an inspiration, and what a beautiful family. Congratulations to you all!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post, Sally - a big high-five to Trista! I really liked the photos of her - they show so much emotion and determination (and happiness). My son competed in tri's for several years but found he couldn't train, work, and still have enough time left for family. Perhaps he'll start again when the children are older. Enjoy summer, Sally!
ReplyDeleteA fantastic tribute, Sally. Great post!
ReplyDeleteWhat a remarkable lady.
ReplyDeleteEveryone must be really proud of her and she has done really well and must have worked so hard to get there.
A very difficult thing to do.
Maggie X
Nuts in May
This is wonderful! I can't wait to read the article. I am happy for Trista and for you all.
ReplyDeleteKathy M.
What a story of perseverance, vision and a family's shared joy in the dreams and accomplishments of a loved one. A joy in living radiates from that mountaintop family portrait. And your closing thoughts of mountain tops and valleys was eloquent and inspiring. BTW, couldn't reach the story through your link but googling her name and Peeblo news article led me to that example of excellent journalism.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the joy!