In the whirlwind of our lives, the occasions where we genuinely feel special can be rare. As we move through the paths of time, we often remain unaware of the impact we have on others. I’m usually shy about public celebrations of my own birthday. Recently, however, I had the privilege of a delightful surprise when family and friends celebrated the occasion by showing up or by sharing some personal thoughts. It felt incredibly good.
I’m grateful for my friends and my family. Thank you for making me feel special.
In 2012, I lost my Dad to cancer. He braved a long and humble fight, starting in 2006 when he was first diagnosed with lung cancer, to the end of his journey when he suffered a relapse and was diagnosed with brain cancer. During this difficult period he also lost our mom after a long illness.
I’ve always been a runner, and My daily run (read this if you haven’t yet!) is only one part of the story. For a long time I was inspired by the idea of running a marathon, but for many years I never really took the steps to make it happen. In 2014 I moved from Paris to NYC, and one of the routines that has helped cement my sense of community and identity as a real “New Yorker” is my daily run along the Hudson River which I wrote about. It gives me the time to reflect, think and plan. What better place to start than the NYC Marathon! That’s what was in the back of my mind.
As you can imagine, having an entry at one of the most famous marathons in the world is not a given. Even as a New Yorker… At one point I tried to get a spot by entering the drawing, but I wasn’t one of the lucky few to be drawn. Another way to gain entry is to run for a charity. That was an option I needed to study further, but if this was the option it had to give meaning to my miles and be a part of my own story.
In 2019, on the 7th anniversary of Papet’s death, I received a communication from NYRR mentioning “Fred’s Team.” Everything aligned and I realized that this was the right time to remember his patience and dignity throughout his long run with cancer by embarking on my own first marathon journey.
This year I’m turning 50, I have been a new Yorker for ten years and I’ve been running with “Fred’s Team” for five years.
Once again I’ll add purpose to my miles by running with the team and would deeply appreciate any support you can give. There are so many people – loved ones and strangers – fighting silent and hidden battles with cancer. I’m committed to raising as much money as I can to make a difference in their lives.
Every dollar raised is another great stride towards progress. Any gift will give doctors and researchers at MSK the funding they need to achieve groundbreaking discoveries. Together, we can make new and better treatment options possible.
I’m not going to be too technical here, but you might have noticed some slight changes to this blog.
Besides some cosmetic aspects of the user experience, its new address might be one of the major changes. Make sure to mark www.flotribeca.com as your favorite, but don’t worry, your old links should still work. Deciding to move is totally aligned with the many parallel projects that I’m currently conducting (FLOWTIV and Brocante that I mentioned in a previous post are obviously among them). You’ll also agree that having a name that is more aligned with the content of the blog and some of its social media presences totally makes sense – “flotribeca” is not that far from “Flo in Tribeca” or “@flotribeca” right?
To make this happen and to ensure that this new blog is essentially the old one and that everything is running smoothly (the old links that I mentioned are one example), I had to refresh, update, and upscale my skills in the technical aspects of website management. It’s always a good thing to constantly learn.
So here we are after some hours of trials and errors with a refreshed, constantly evolving project where the logo as well got a facelift. Hopefully, you’ll appreciate its refinement and what I consider a more welcoming aspect.
The path of our life is simple, but definitely full of tremendous obstacles that are not worth fighting with the time we have at hand. The best and simplest way to manage them is to flow around. Don’t be fooled by any shortcuts; these might drive you to paths that could raise even bigger obstacles.
So let’s go with the Flo – let’s build some mountains!
As far as I remember, I started street running at an early teenage age once my parents decided it was okay for me to go around the neighborhood by myself. Anecdotally, this probably also aligned with the years when I decided that I would join the Air Force as a pilot.
I’m not counting here the hours spent as a kid running, biking, climbing, crying, smiling, moving in the garden of my suburban parent’s house or my grandma’s country house. At that time I was probably like most of the kids at the tipping point of my endurance journey.
My almost daily practice opened so many paths and opportunities. It helped me join the French Air Force Academy, navigating through the intensive studies required by the ‘Classes préparatoires’ of the French educational system. It helped me navigate the highs and lows of my life. This is one of the major activities that helped me maintain my balance through difficulties. It brings me joy. It helped me discover new practices and put me on the path to many valuable connections. My daily run took me to mindfulness practices and along the way allowed me to meet tremendously talented people.
My journey, which started along the Marne River in France, has taken me to the riversides of Manhattan and, most notably, to Hudson River Park.
My daily routine led me to run my very first marathon at the age of 45, giving me the opportunity to raise awareness and funds for a cause close to my heart. But let’s discuss that in a different post. Spoiler alert: I registered for the drawing of the NYC 2024 TCS Marathon yesterday.
I went on my daily run this morning and I’m planning to do so as long as I’m able to cry, smile, move. Let’s get it out here, my secret objective is to run at least one marathon in my nineties and many others along the way.
At the risk of repeating myself if you’ve read some recent posts, running, like walking, helps me reflect.
I’m eager to share the excitement surrounding two projects that have been consuming my nights and keeping me awake.
The first is FLOWTIV, the consulting firm my wife and I founded that leverages our combined expertise to make a meaningful impact on the world.
The second, Brocante: My Personal Approach to Organizing a Garage Sale, is a venture deeply close to my heart, inspired by the unique stories that our belongings carry.
