If you are a sentimental old sap like me, you measure your life in love, family, and friendship.
Laurie Gilfedder
1984 – 2019. FI’s 35th anniversary
It’s hard to imagine that the average cost of a new home was under $100,000 and most households earned less than $25,000 per year in 1984 when FI opened. Gas was $1.20 per gallon; the Dow Jones high was 1287! Can you even remember?! It was a long time ago!
When you break it down, 35 years is equal to 12,775 days or 306,600 hours or 18,396,000 minutes. It’s approximately 27,900 family meals together, and if you’ve been “dieting” and you’re thinking of food, it equates to about 1 year, ten months of continuous eating! Or if you’re in the mood for a nap, 102,200 hours of sleeping. Simply said, it’s a very long, long time!
306,600 Hours
When I first reflected on this 35th anniversary, I began thinking about how many hours I’ve spent at FI. The time sneaks up on you minute by minute, hour by hour, year by year and at some point, you wonder where all the time went. And after 35 years, you take a moment to reflect on what the relationship was all about. Of course, in the beginning, it was about health, fitness, classes, and weight loss, but it became so much more than all that. It became a truly meaningful blessing in my life. FI was never really work; it was a wonderful relationship between my co-workers, my gym friends, my class buddies, my bosses, and simply all the people I got to wish good morning and goodbye to every single day. So many faces, so many friends through the years, enriching every moment. My home away from home. If you are a sentimental old sap like me, you measure your life in love, family, and friendship. So sitting outside on a beautiful day, daydreaming and thinking about this anniversary, I caught myself humming Seasons of Love, the signature song from the 1996 musical, Rent. If I were clever, I would have come up with something from 1984, but no, not so clever. As I sang the words, I thought of all the years at FI and realized that song says it all! Considering that so many of my 305,600 hours were spent at FI, here’s my version of “Seasons of Love.”
It’s three hundred and six thousand, six hundred hours
Yes, three hundred six thousand, six hundred moments so dear
three hundred and six thousand six hundred moments
How do you measure…. thirty-five years
Openings, and closings
In workouts, and lots of classes
In hellos and goodbyes
Sharing all with our friends
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours at FI
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours so dear
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours
How do you measure 35 years?
How about friends
How about friends
Measure in love
Seasons of life
Seasons of health
Growing old with our friends
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours at FI
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours we’ve shared
Three hundred and six
Hundred thousand hours
How do you measure the life
Of a woman or a man?
In heartrates, gym friendships
And those we hold dear
In fitness, in health
Together throughout
It’s time to sing out
our story’s not over yet
Let’s celebrate
Thirty-five years and our friends!
Our community of friends!
Remember the love
Remember the love
Remember the love
Measure in love
Measure, measure your life in love
Seasons of love
35 Seasons of love
By the way, the number one song in 1984 was Prince’s, “When the Doves Cry.” Maybe next time 😆
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About the Author
Laurie Gilfedder
Laurie Gilfedder is, among many other things, the manager of Fitness Incentive’s Personal Training Department.