"Are you nervous, Alex? You probably won't be able to finish this set..know what I'm sayin?" Kevin repeats this about every other set I do..when doing over 200 workouts with this guy, it gets old..but I probably deserve it for the mess I throw at him daily. A personal trainer by day..A therapist by workout...and what I think to be my very good friend. Braves or Georgia Tech (boo!) t-shirts, sweat pants, or jeans with one button is his everyday attire, but don't let the looks fool ya...A mere genius in disguise. I was fortunate enough to have BUMPED into Kev at Brit's Brothers Gym, a place that has truly changed my life. It's not the ridiculous amount of push ups or unbearable lunges back and forth, but the conversations, the knowledge I gain, and the true feeling of joy that I get when I am at the gym...Without all of these factors and especially without Kev I would have no idea what this constant state of joy truly was...The topic pops up rather frequently, but no one has ever really asked me...So..one Thursday in September during a set of un-assisted-impossible-dips, he asked me, "Is there a difference between joy and happiness?" After catching my breath and making sure my arms were still attached to my body, I told him, "I don't know,I didn't realize there was a difference." I think most of us don't want to realize that there is a difference, we don't want to really dig deep into our souls and see if we really have that constant joy or if we cover it up daily with different people, ideas, and mindless tasks that bring us a happy feeling for the time being. It really got my mind racing and questioning that if I took away all the "things" I do and have would I feel the joy that Kev talks about...This is one of the many conversations that Kev and I have, but the one that touched me the most. The one that made me think about my life and the way I live it. I think everyone should think about, write about it, learn and hopefully strive for that constant joy that we all deserve..I hope that one day Kev will write about what brings him constant joy and how he found it so that more people can learn from and share his story...So to my ass-kicking-advice-giving-therapist-trainer-friend, Kev, thank you, so glad I BUMPED into you. I'm not tryin to be funny, but ...swing batter and eat a burrito... know what I'm sayin!?
