Bono Says...

BT (Before Triplets) Chris Jackson and I used to run together.  We were both getting our Masters and I read somewhere that physical goals helped with academics so I made us run two marathons.  Because I don’t mess around with goal setting.

We would have to get up between 4:15 and 4:45 am so that we returned by 6:45 am.  That gave me just enough time to take a shower, drink two to three cups of coffee, pull my wet hair up into a pony tail, and make the 2 minute commute to school by 7:30 am.   When you set your alarm for the early morning, you need some tough ammunition to prevent the pushing of the snooze button.  Our first strategy involved placing the alarm clock clear across the room by the door to our bedroom.  The second strategy was most effective.  We purchased an alarm clock with a CD player and set U2’s “Beautiful Day,” as our wake up song. 

When Bono greeted us with, “The heart is a bloom, shoots up through the stony ground there's no room, no space to rent in this town, you're out of luck and the reason that you had to care, the traffic is stuck, and you're not moving anywhere…” we somehow managed to crawl out bed, throw on our running clothes, bob our heads and point at one another (sometimes Chris Jackson busted out into a full dance sequence) and make it out the front door.  We usually didn’t speak until we crossed the pedestrian bridge. 

Now when my alarm goes off around 5:15, I crawl out of bed alone.  The only marathon we’re training for together now is the long distance course of parenthood.  I leave Chris Jackson in bed, usually with one of the girls, and sneak into the kitchen.  Even though I complete my Bible study first, it’s still dark when I walk out the door.  I send up a quick prayer before I hit the play button on my ipod.  1) Please allow the girls to sleep peacefully until I return home. 2) Please protect me while I’m out in the dark of morning. 3) Please keep all my post-triplet organs, specifically my bladder and intestines, from falling out of my privates while I run.

The first song on my play list?  “Beautiful Day,” of course.  Bono says, “It’s a beautiful day, don’t let it get away,” and I begin my slow drag (picture an injured dog) of a jog.

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about the verse:

What you don't have you don't need it now

I have a tendency to manipulate lyrics to fit my own personal wants and needs rather than listening to the artists intention.  In this case, I think Bono is telling me to be thankful for what I have.  Because I think Bono is a guy with deep thoughts.

Sometimes I grumble; I don't run as fast or as far as I used to, I don't get a solid 8 hours of sleep each night, loading triplets into the Jeep makes me sweat, I got a bad hair cut last week. 

But I think I should listen to Bono about this when he sings to me. Everything in my life is a gift and a blessing.  During my Bible study last week I came across the following quote.  I wrote it in my study guide without crediting the source, “With thankfulness comes contentment, a satisfaction with what God has given us and where He has placed us.” 

I want to think about where God has placed me in this crazy, glorious, sometimes confusing world. And I want to feel thankful.