Laugh. Think. Cry.

Today was a beautiful, sunny March 10th in Austin. Spring is in the air. There is nothing like going out for a run on a day like today.

I rarely (if ever) run with an mp3 player as I like having the time to be able to disconnect from the noise of my daily world. It is a time to be at one with the sounds of my breathing, the pitter patter of my foot strikes, and the absolute pleasure of being alive. Thoughts come and go and my mind wanders freely. Reflection. Being. Present.

Then, in the purity of the moment, the thought crossed my mind: am I living the vivid existence that is worthy of time and life on planet earth? And, with all due respect to the Tragically Hip - am I living fully, completely?

When I got back from my run, I was left pondering the thought. There was a peace within, but thoughts were percolating to the surface. I dove into the digital stream of the Internet to find out who and what had passed before me on this day. And there it was: March 10 - Jim Valvano's birthday.

Jim Valvano was the men's basketball coach at North Carolina State from 1980 - 1990. My first exposure to Valvano was in 1983 - the year that Lorenzo Charles made the dunk heard 'round the nation, the night when the NC State Wolfpack defeated the heavily-favored University of Houston in the NCAA Championship game. It was my first memory of "March Madness", best exemplified not just by the last second shot and the underdog win but by Valvano's run onto the court looking for someone to hug!

Valvano died of cancer on April 28, 1993 at the tender age of 47. On March 3, just a few weeks before, he won the inaugural Arthur Ashe Courage and Humanitarian Award at the first annual ESPY awards. "Jimmy V", as he was known, gave an acceptance speech for the ages. He started with three important points:

"To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day. Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that’s a full day. That’s a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you’re going to have something special."

More profound words could not be spoken.

Today, a 47 year-old man went for a run on a sunny March 10th in Austin. Afterwards, as he pondered living “fully, completely” on the day that Jimmy V entered this world, the man’s words echoed in his mind.

Laugh. Think. Cry. A full day. A heck of a day. I hope you did as well.

Photo credit: Brent Schneeman