Moved to WordPress!

WordPress in 2014:

I've decided to move my blog to WordPress: http://emilyssilver.wordpress.com/ to blog about everything from yoga, French, photography, swimming and my year of non-drinking! Hope to be expressing myself at least once a month via the blog and look forward to sharing my thoughts with you.

All the best!

Emily

The World Around You

Open your eyes to the WORLD around you!!!!

As I was leaving work tonight, I noticed a female duck standing in the fountain outside of our building. Instead of going straight to my car for some reason I decided to walk up to it (probably because I've always loved animals). 

She didn't move as I approached, and as I got closer I saw that she was shivering and was trying to quack but nothing was coming out. 

I sat down near her and noticed she had a large gash across her upper breast. With the assistance of Jimmy Tran (thank you for the box and blanket!) I climbed into the fountain and rescued her. 

Thank goodness for the Humane Society! I rushed her to Milpitas center (http://hssv.convio.net/site/PageServer?pagename=updated_home) and they're keeping her overnight, if she's stable in the morning they will attempt to save her.

No creature is too small or obscure, if you notice someone/thing in need - go with your gut, help it.

I'll be checking in on our little duck friend tomorrow. Cross your fingers and send some good thoughts.

- Emily

Four Years Later...

As I get ready to head to Omaha for 2012 Olympic Trials, I can't help but think to myself... What if? I decided to stop swimming in 2008 following the Beijing Olympics and in the back of my mind I wonder how different my life may have been if I had decided to keep swimming.

How would I be feeling right now going into Trials?

Would I be ready?

Would I be too nervous and excited to sleep?

Would I be able to qualify for another Olympic team?

My life is so different from what it was like four years ago.

And now, I head to Omaha, NE on Friday to watch and work at the 2012 Olympic Trials and I can't help but feel a twinge of sadness that I decided to stop.

Hopefully I can hold it together as I watch one of the fastest swim meets the U.S. puts on.

Good luck to all my swimming friends - I wish you the best of luck next week and will be cheering you on through it all!

2008 Trials with teammate Natalie Coughlin right after qualifying for the team.

#SwimTrials12

Janet Evans speak on: What does it mean to be an Olympian?

Yesterday afternoon 5-time Olympic Medalist Janet Evans was the keynote speaker at the Olympic Sportslink conference at the Antlers Hotel in Colorado Springs, CO. I listened to her story and wanted to share it with you. It's quite an incredible Olympic story and a journey that's not over...

Evans graciously thanked the members of the crowd for attending and asking her to speak. She posed the question, ‘What does it mean to be an Olympian?’ for an athlete it is one of the greatest honors of all time and each person has their own story of how they got there. Evans chose to share her personal story with us and explain what being an Olympian means to her.

In 1984 the Olympic Games came to Los Angeles. Evans parents decided to take her and her brother to the Opening Ceremonies. At 12 years old, she recalls sitting in the crowd watching the Opening Ceremonies unfold and thinking how incredible it would be to be a part of them. At that moment the Olympics called to her, she wanted to be an Olympian. At 80 lbs. and many years of hard work ahead, Evans decided then and there that she would do whatever it took to be an Olympian.

The next 4 years of her life, she dedicated every morning and afternoon to training. In that time she never once missed a practice. From 1984 to 1988 Evans rose to “swimming” fame and burst onto the international stage by making the 1988 Olympic Team in 3 events. She was an Olympian! Evans recalled the time in-between Trials and the Games and the ease she felt for making the team.

At 16 years old, she thoroughly enjoyed the training camp in Hawaii, sunbathing and relaxing because no one expected her to beat the East Germans so what was the point in continuing to train hard. One day as she was lounging by the pool she remembers a man walking up to her and asked, “What’s it like to be an Olympian?”. At that time Evans did not know who it was and responded, “It’s great! We get lots of free gear and we’re in Hawaii!”, the man looked and her and smiled, “Oh yeah I understand. I am Olympian too. I won 7 events at the ’72 Games; I have 7 gold medals and 7 World Records.” The man was Mark Spitz. Feeling somewhat embarrassed Evans later found out that the coaches had put him up to it with the hopes that he could change her mind frame before Seoul. Spitz told Evans to go back to her room, focus on her swims, believe in herself, and beat the East Germans for the USA. So she did. She decided to believe in herself and her ability. She decided to prove others wrong and win Gold for her country.  

In the 1976 Olympics the East German Women’s team won 11 of 13 Gold Medals, the USA? One. Everyone told Evans that the East Germans were unbeatable, but with her new found determination she went out there to prove everyone wrong. And she did. At the 1988 Olympic Games Evans beat the East Germans in all three races. She was an Olympic Champion and immediate inspiration for our country.

1988 Olympics Women's 800m freestyle final

The next 8 years were very difficult for Evans. She experienced great pressure to stay on top and swimming became something she had to do, not something she wanted to do. During the time between ’88 and ‘92 she traveled all over the country with Billy Payne, the president and chief officer of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games, campaigning to bring the Olympics to Atlanta.

In 1992 Janet became the first woman to ever win back-to-back Olympic titles in the 800-meter freestyle, but her Silver medal finish in the 400-meter free was enough to break Evans into thinking she wanted to retire. Silver wasn’t good enough in her eyes and swimming felt like a chore. She decided to continue her education at Stanford, quit swimming, and become a lawyer. As she was packing up her apartment in Austin, Evans received a call from Mark Schubert. He told her he was taking the head coaching job at USC and she needed to move there to train with him. When she resisted he told her that she needed to because she was not yet a champion. He told her the true value of being a champion is the life lessons you learn through your successes and failures and she had not learned those yet.

After some convincing Evans decided to move to Southern California and continue her training. Swimming became a part of, not all of her life; she started to love the sport again and was happy to be competing. In 1994 Evans made her third Olympics which were held in Atlanta, the city she campaigned for with Payne years earlier. About a month out of the Games Evans received a call from Payne asking her to carry the torch at the Opening Ceremonies. He didn’t tell her who she would be receiving it from or giving it to, just that she would be the final woman and second to last person. She said no. Janet wanted to win and her best event was the day after the Opening Ceremonies, she didn’t want any distractions. Payne promised her that if she carried torch it will be the greatest moment of her Olympic career. After some thought, Evans accepted the offer with much skepticism.

She recalls running with the torch and looking into the crowd of athletes, this was her 3^rd Olympics and she said it was the first time she really saw the other athletes. She realized that the Olympic Games were about the ATHLETES! The majority of athletes competing would not win a medal, but they were there to try their hardest and each one would give their best. Right then Evans decided that as long as she gave her best, that’s all anyone could ask for. It wasn’t all about winning.  

As she handed the torch to 1960 Olympic champion Muhammad Ali he told her that was his greatest Olympic moment. As she left the stadium she grabbed some guy and cried into his arms for 5 minutes. She had never cried after winning an Olympic medal, but realizing what the Olympics really meant to her brought tears to her eyes. Evans placed 6^th and 8^th in her final Olympics, but walked away content knowing she had given her best and that’s what the Games are all about.

To Janet Evans that’s what it means to be an Olympian.

Start A Chain Reaction: Rachel's Challenge

What an appropriate day to share my story with you...

This morning I attended the Rachel's Challenge seminar at the Penrose House in Colorado Springs. Darrell Scott and his wife Sandy started Rachel's Challenge to honor their daughter Rachel Joy Scott, who was the first victim to be shot and killed during the Columbine shooting on April 20, 1999. Their intent is to honor Rachel's life and help prevent other families from going through what all of the Columbine families had endured. Their focus is telling people around the world how Rachel deliberately reached out to those who were different from her, new to school, picked on by others, or just lonely, and in doing so inspire the change she hoped to see in the world.

Rachel's Challenge is to start your own chain reaction of kindness and compassion because that was Rachel's goal and mission in life. A quote from Rachel's essay "My Ethics, My Codes of Life" which she wrote only a month before her death, she clearly describes her wish, "I have this theory that if one person can go out of their way to show compassion, then it will start a chain reaction of the same. People will never know how far a little kindness can go." Coming from a young high school girl, this is pretty powerful stuff.

I encourage you to visit her website when you get a chance. I feel like my life has been forever changed after this morning.

Now, to share my story. It seems as though Rachel and I have something in common, spreading kindness. I actually find it very strange that I wrote this email to a friend almost exactly a month ago today. I wouldn't go so far as to say that I live each moment of my life like this, but I am inspired every once and a while to make a difference in others lives through kindness and I wanted to share this example with you. Who knows maybe it will inspire you!

Below is an email I wrote to a friend a few days after it happened:

Tuesday, August 23, 2011
To: Susan W.
From: Emily S.

Also – let me share a story with you that I haven’t told anyone else!

I flew into Salt Lake City Thursday and realized I had a 3 hour layover, after spending the past month in and out of airports you might understand my disappointment and frustration realizing this. But then, I decided to just accept it and try to think of my wait as time to relax. I walked all over the airport, did some pleasure reading for about an hour, and then decided to looking for a place to grab a glass of vino. I guess some other people had the same idea cause the restaurant I found was packed.

I sat down at a single table along the wall and pulled out my book. When the waiter finally got to me he seemed quite flustered, I felt for him immediately. I ordered a single glass of wine and water. It took about 10 minutes for it to come. At that point I could have decided that this place had terrible service and choose a negative attitude, but instead I decided to observe. I took in the people around me, the other waiters, customer’s attitudes, food choices. I tried to take it all. I came to the realization that this place was filled with people thoughtlessly stuffing their faces before catching their flights; everyone seemed to be in a hurry, unhappy, tired. My waiter was no exception. Bickering with his coworker, doing his best to meet the needs of his customers, he was practically running from table to table, this place was clearly understaffed. I decided to kill him with kindness - every time he came to my table I did my best to engage him in conversation, smile, use ‘Please’ and ‘Thank you’. For some reason I just felt really bad for the guy, he didn’t seem very happy, who would be slaving away in an airport restaurant?

I read my book for a while, enjoyed my wine, and took a minute to think about how I could change this dude’s attitude. So here’s what I did… for a $12 bill, I tipped him $10 and wrote a note on the receipt, “A smile goes a long way! You’re doing a great job, keep it up.”

I smiled at him as I walked out, wondering what he would think of my random act of kindness J For all I know when he read that note he could have thought I had the hots for him, which I definitely did not, but I know for sure he felt better about himself than before I walked in.

Thought you’d enjoy my little story – I haven’t shared that with anyone else, but it’s true; being kind to other people can change the world!

:) Em

Well, that's my story... go out their and start your own chain reaction! You never know the impact you might have in someones life.

Tell those you love how much you care about them today!

Happy Wednesday,

Emily

inspiration.

"One day it will be my turn to pass the lessons I've learned throughout my life on to the next generation. When that time comes and I reflect back on my life, I don't want my lessons to be rooted in regret. Lessons from failed dreams that I never found the courage to pursue. Lessons from years of settling just short of what I really wanted. Or lessons from not taking the time to learn about myself and what is it that I needed to be happy." - Sean Aiken

Photo Credits: Me!

He speaks to my soul.

Bike To Work!

Like this guy. 

So I decided to bike to work today, and I loved it! There is something about being on a bike that allows you to see the world in a completely different way than being in a car.

How come?

Cause you get to smell the air! Some pretty smelling flower is blooming around where I live. And you're definitely more careful - no texting and biking - and therefore more observant of what's around you. I took the same car route as usual and saw local shops on my ride that I didn't even know existed. I found out there's a little restaurant across from my house open M-Sun 8-5. No idea!

And there was something about leaving my cube, changing into riding clothes, and taking off on two wheels. It really allowed me to de-stress from the day and recharged my energy level.

Absolutely loved it. How many days do you think I can go in a row?!

It's on.