Day 8: Show us your strength!
Can you lift your kid over your head? Throw that mountain bike up onto your roof rack? Show us just how strong you really are! Of course in the land of Title Nine, inner strength always counts, too!
The Challenge: We want to hear how you’ve mastered that squat press, conquered that crazy climb, dead lifted all three kids at once, or tackled a challenge that required more emotional, physical, and mental strength than you knew you had. You deserve some credit for your amazing accomplishments, so share your story and/or a photo below and you could win a limited edition Power of 9 Tee and Title Nine Water Bottle. Don’t wait, get entered>
*Prize awarded based on availability – a substitute prize
of equal or greater value may be awarded.
There is one day in my life that I have never felt more scared, strong, or brave since. Although there are days where I have lifted more or been stronger, none of those days compare to this one.
I was wild apple picking with my 3 year old twin daughters and 1 year old son in an old cow pasture that we grew up playing in. The field always had a few cows and heifers in it every summer, but they always kept their distance from us. So on this particular hot, September day, my husband was out of town so I decided to load the kids in the truck and grab some baskets to introduce my kids to my favorite apple spot.
I got all the kids through the barbed wire fence, and were happily shaking the trees and picking up apples when I noticed a very grumpy looking “cow” coming toward us. Then the “cow” started bellowing at us, and then ,suddenly, I realized that the “cow” was not a cow, but a very angry bull determined to attack me and my three defenseless children! I felt paralyzed with fear. The barbed wire fence was 65 feet away, the bull was 5 feet from us and circling, and I knew I could not run that far with 3 children in my arms without the bull catching us an knocking us down.
After shouting and throwing a stick at the bull, he only got more angry and aggressive. I was sick to my stomach and shouting for help, and then realized the only thing I could do. I lifted all three of my children and stuffed the two girls into the tree as high as I could reach (they ended up partially hanging by their diapers!). I told them “Hang on tight, Mommy is getting help!” and ran for my life with the baby. I tucked and rolled under the bottom fence wire, gashing my back on the wire, but the bull did not catch us and at least my baby was safe, but I still had to rescue his sisters!
I ran for help, being SO afraid that one of my girls would fall out of the tree and be trampled. When the neighbors (who are also my in-laws) heard the shouting, they ran up and my two brother in laws distracted the bull and rescued my daughters, who were screaming bloody murder.
I have never felt braver, stronger, or more full of adrenaline than that moment where I lifted my daughters into the tree, and sprinted for my life with my son. I hope to never repeat that incident again, and give all pastures with cows in them a very wide berth.
My dad told me I’d never finish a marathon. So for my 21st birthday, I made it my goal to do it. I spent 6 months training. The morning of the race came and it was 28 degrees in Phoenix, I wanted to quit right then. But I had been training for so long, I stayed committed to finishing. So I ran my first marathon cold and sweaty, but I remember it fondly.
My strength is in trying again and again. I’ve never been the strongest, the fittest or even the smartest, but I also never stop trying. Strength is in the believing!
So my strongest feat has been an emotional one. There have been times in my life where I think I can take no more, but being married to a military man has definitely tested my stamina, physically and mentally. It appears that whenever my husband has to “travel” and I’m at home with our two young boys is when trouble always strikes. This past trip we had just arrived to our new home after many days of myself and the youngins on the road. When we arrived our household goods were delayed. No big deal. However when they did get delivered it was 2 days prior to my husband leaving for 6 weeks so I had to do the house set up, watch kids, keep kids happy so i could unpack in this new town. Unfortunately one week into his trip our very old dog got very sick and the time had come to say goodbye. Making that arrangement for my beautiful girl who I bought with my first paycheck was so difficult. I had to take her in to the vet while also trying to keep it light for my 4 and 5 year olds sake. Then I had to hold in the flood of blubbering tears I wanted to do and scale it back to just some tears. Rough day, but my kids came out of it with an appreciation of God and heaven and my girl Ember had a very peaceful and dignified passing. And I realized I am made of some strong strong stuff!
As long as I can recall, my younger sister’s always been stronger than me.
Here she is in Lagunitas, CA, warning me not to step out of line:
I am physically strong because I can lift my 12′, 44 lbs stand up paddleboard onto my Nissan Xterra. This is no small feat being that I’m 5’3″. This give me independance. I dont have to convince someone to “go with me”. Mentally I am strong because I provide work full-time, full-time Grad school, and I provide in-home care to my mom and dad, divorced, both with cancer. Forget the Kardashians, come to my house!
Congrats, Chandra! We think you are all that is a strong woman – throwing that paddle board on top of her car while juggling a full-time job, graduate school and taking care of her parents. You go girl! Enjoy your new Power of 9 Tee and Water Bottle!
All my life, I could never do a handstand. I struggled as a kid when it came to athletics. As an adult, I took up yoga back in 2000 and then in 2005 I earned my yoga teacher certification. I struggled with inversions. I was able to work into headstand after a while but handstand remained elusive.
I realized that if I was going to be a yoga teacher, I really needed to own my fear and get up into that handstand. It took me a long time and I finally am able to do it against the wall. I still am working on getting up the courage and strength to work on it in the middle of the room!
This one is harder than yesterday. It used to be carrying a pack that was too big for me to pick up and keeping up with the best of the guys while carrying the moster pack. Now it is more along the lines of being a home owner in a place that can get very cold in the winter (-50) and being able to fix or at least trouble shoot my heating system. That is important because there aren’t so many maintenace folks that I can call for help.
It was a little past 4am recently when my poor, feverish 3.5 year old woke up miserable. He wanted, nay- needed!- to be held. There was no other way any of us were going to be getting any sleep otherwise. He was also hungry and thirsty (finally! We’d tried to keep him hydrated and eating, but no appetite when you’re sick ain’t fun. My dilemma..its the middle of the night, lights are almost all off and I don’t want him waking up and thinking its party time; and hmmm..how *was* I going to prepare food AND hold him (while pregnant). Solution? Keep the nightlights on and pop him in a baby/toddler carrier! I pad lightly into the room, careful not to wake the rest of the family, and feel for the carrier in the dark (I keep it with our rashguards and swim suits..a leeetle hard to differentiate in the blackness). I tie it on, pop him in and lay his sweaty head on my chest. His whimpering stops like magic. Under cover of semi-darkness we put together a light meal for him (celery sticks with peanut butter, kefir, and an organic lollipop which I hold my ground on and tell him its for later that day after he’s eaten more real food. oh and lukewarm tea with honey). I feel like a female Atlas as I carry around a baby in my stomach, a child on my stomach (all 37 lbs. of him balanced in a carrier) and my tired, weary, mama-self. I coax him onto a chair to eat as I drowsily sit next to him listening to the munch and slurp of a hunger satiated. Still dark, he finishes, we rebrush his teeth and head for bed once more..snug and cosy in the knowledge that this mama still has more time to rest before the birds start chirping and we repeat the process anew. Atalas never had it this good.