Today’s Where We Are Now is from the desk of Brent Thomson, COO.

Team – 

Much of my life has been about finding solace in extreme conditions. As Mark indicated yesterday, I did compete in the Mt. Everest Marathon in 2011. The next year I drove 250 horses across 500 miles on the Mongolian high desert. Many of you are competitors and you know the training requirements involved for these events.

I don’t know what’s been harder: getting to the starting line or the finish line. They both take preparation and commitment for two of the most difficult things in life — start and finish. Preparation in life as in competitive sports is #1. When I was getting ready for any endurance event the first step in my planning was to re-create the environment I would be in. For Everest I made several trips to Glacier National Park, hiked to the Sperry Glacier at 8,000 feet, camped there for 3 nights, mapping out three 13-mile runs up to 11,000 feet, so each day I could run 13 miles out and 13 back to get the 26 miles at altitude. Granted, it was nowhere near the 17,000 feet of the marathon, but it did prepare me for extreme discomfort. 

Day 30. I remember WFH Days 1 to 10 having no idea we would still be WFH for what is now one month. For me, the physical and mental preparation necessary to stay in balance under the new limitations placed on our daily routines was critical. I went back to creating the “environment” I was called to participate in. I tackled getting creative around exercise and “Marie Kondo’ing” my home office with the same focus I used to map out long runs, only no GPS required this time. If I have a shorter workout I make sure it’s harder. I recently read about a man who climbed the height of Mt. Everest on his staircase, 41,000 steps! I’m clear about the people and things that give me joy, and treat them as “essential services.” I’m inspired.

With no clear end date in sight yet, we have come to understand that the whole world hit PAUSE and in many ways was brought to its knees. Yet, because of this, we have seen nature return. Pollution has been reduced around the world as we stay out of our cars, in India the Himalayas are visible for the first time in 30 years — remarkable. This is just one of the silver linings I hope continue to put a feeling of wonder back in our lives as we move through this. 

Yes, there are serious economic repercussions from this that will affect everyone around the world. We have been there before, albeit not in our lifetime, and we have come back better, stronger, and more united in our recovery. Humans are a community not meant to be defined by loss, but by how we recover. We’ve carried the light for each other during this dark time and we won’t stop when this is over.

We had no notice on the WFH start and no visibility to the finish. So, we are now not only training, but competing simultaneously. 

I am so proud of this team!

This is Where We Are Now.

Brent Thomson