Saturday October 15, 2022 | The Oracle | Boys Town AO | 6 AM | Clear and Cold, 31 degrees (Feels Like 28)
PAX: Blue Suede, Long Neck, Limu, Hei Hei, Paddles, Doppler, Tea Party, DOA, Hard Hat, Mufasa, Ketchup, Cutting Edge, Pothole, The Big One, Roll Bar, Arm Bar, Beta Max, Obi-Wan, Diesel, Blades of Glory, Spacebar, Paddles, Ozark, Steeple, Mesquite, Kielbasa, Wentworth, Old Spice, Swift, Lansbury, Kryptonite, Green House, Tater Tot, Khakis, Slow Pitch, Infant Sorrow, Stitches, and Wait Time.
QIC: Wait Time
The PAX gathered at the shovel flag, and YHC welcomed the group to the Oracle. We celebrated two downrange PAX – Mesquite (F3Phoenix) and Blue Suede (former Site Q in Omaha now residing in Gainesville, FL). Our theme today involves a “key.” One of my most memorable workouts with Blue Suede occurred at Wild Kingdom. We were bear crawling in the dark at the Lake Zorinsky Dam. I made the mistake of leaving my pocket unzipped and I lost my key to my car. If you have visited the Zorinsky Dam, you know the key was literally a “needle in the haystack.” Despite the tall grasses and darkness, Blue Suede found my key and saved my ass.
We reviewed the mission statement, principles of F3 and the disclaimer. The PAX moseyed towards the Boys Town Post Office.
WARM-A-RAMA: BRO-GA
The PAX stopped at the statue for BRO-GA.
SSH x 15 IC | Big Ones x 5 | Plank x 5 | Downward Dog x 5 | Plank x 5 | Merkins x 10 | Half Pigeon | Plank x 5 | Half Pigeon | Side Plank | Reverse Plank and Shoulder Stretch | Side Plank | Hamstring Stretch | Garland Pose
PAX moseyed towards the post office. At the round-a-bout, the PAX stopped for Silent SSH.
Silent SSH x 6 to 15
PAX did not end in unison, so we did 5 burpees. PAX moseyed across 144th Street to the grassy bowl.
The STEINL:
Plank x 30 | Chilcutt Plank x 30 | Merkins x 10 | Amazing Spiderman x 10 IC | Merkins x 10 | Plank x 30 | Chilcutt Plank x 30 | Merkins x 10 | Amazing Spiderman x 10 IC | Merkins x 10
ELEVEN – Burpees and Merkins
PAX did Elevens by doing the Bernie Sanders up the hill. At the top of the hill, PAX did Merkins, and at the bottom they completed Burpees. After round 5, we switched Bernie Sanders to sprinting. Conditions were gloomy. Sprinklers had run on the grassy knoll, which left a sheet of ice on the hill.
PAX moseyed back to Boys Town Campus. At the round-a-bout, we stopped for MARGE AND HOMER.PAX continued to mosey onto campus and stopped at the practice field adjacent to the field house for a Three Man Grinder.
THREE MAN GRINDER: MERKIN MANIA & WALL EXERCISES (DIPS, STEP UPS, BOX JUMPS) [AMRAP]
PAX moseyed to shovel flag for RANCID STYLE AMERICAN HAMMER x 37 IC
ANNOUNCEMENTS:
THIRD F: There are an amazing amount of Third F opportunities in the community. I tried to remember them all but probably left some out. Check the Third F Slack Channel: NEXT SATURDAY: Heartland Hope, Project Pink Poker Night. Blood Drive at Nebraska Community Blood Bank.
PRAYERS: Open Sesame and Hightower family.
COT: STEAL THE KEY FROM UNDER THE PILLOW
This year has been a period of personal growth for me. My growth journey began in January when I started working with an executive coach. She broke open my life in a powerful, life-changing way. My coach is a 5’4″ Iranian woman, who is a force of nature. She asked a very simple question during my first call that had a profound impact on my life. “Can you write your vision for the next chapter of your life?” That very simple question started it all.
Many of the PAX have possibly heard my F3 story on the GLUE-OOM Podcast or other F3Nation Podcast. I have always described my F3 origin story to include my intention to not live out my life the way my father did before dying at the age of 60. When I described my next chapter to my coach, she initiated what felt like a “Persian Mindfuck.” She ended the call by saying, “You will never be the man you were intended to be until you reconcile your mother’s story about your father.” And the call was over.
I was pleading to know more at the end of the call. “Wait!” We are ending here?” It was like I was talking with Yoda.
My coach went on to recommend that I read Robert Bly’s book, “Iron John: A Book About Men.” The book’s material is dense. It uses a mythological story of a Wild Man named “Iron John” to express how a boy becomes a man. My coach’s statement “you will never be the man you were intended to be until you reconcile your mother’s story about your father” is symbolized by an eight-year old boy being told by Iron John that he needed to steal a key from under his mother’s pillow in order to free Iron John from a cage. Furthermore, the boy’s father had given the key to his mother for safekeeping.
Stealing the key from under his mother’s pillow is an act of defiance. It is risking your mother’s approval. In my case, it is reconciling my mother’s story about my father, “Don’t be your father. Don’t be irresponsible. Don’t squander away your life.”
That story (in my mind) entrapped me in my own cage. I allowed the story to limit what was possible in my life. Throughout my life, my fear prevented me from examining my own painful wounds and releasing my own Wild Man from the cage. At 51 years old, I have never experienced more personal growth. It all began with my coach’s simple question, followed by her wisdom and encouragement to pursue therapy, which further accelerated my growth path.
Today’s workout went beyond the boundaries of the Boys Town campus. Running across 144th Street symbolized how we can unlock the cage to our own Wild Man if we are willing to steal the key from under the pillow. What story must you reconcile to be the man you were intended to be?
We ended with a ball of man. Obi-wan led us in prayer.
Grace & Peace,
Wait Time