Not Intensity-- Frequency
- rwerkman
- Feb 27
- 3 min read
Last month, a local principal called and asked for help.
One of their students had been missing a lot of school. His mom works early in the morning. She has to leave before school opens, and on many days there simply wasn’t anyone to drop him off.
That’s the beauty of our partnership with RSU 71 — and the generosity of this community.
We were able to provide a scholarship for Bus Stop Before Care. Now his mom drops him off in time to get to work, and our team makes sure he gets on the bus. He hasn’t missed a day since he started.
When I review our annual statistics, that scholarship shows up as a number. It will be included in our total aid given. But that number doesn’t begin to capture the difference between going to school and not. It doesn’t capture the relief his mom must feel. Or the fact that our Youth Development Director reports that he’s happy and “super polite.” (Or that he gets to do yoga!)
Earlier this winter, I spent time reviewing our 2025 data. More than 115,000 check-ins. Thousands of program hours. Hundreds of scholarships.
But those numbers don’t include the conversations at the end of the hall. The friendships made in programs. The encouragement someone feels when they walk through our doors on a hard day.
I recently read an article reflecting on the Olympics. Researchers found that even medal-winning athletes often feel an unexpected letdown after the big moment. They thought that achievement would make them happy. Often, it didn’t.
What did predict happiness? Not intensity — frequency. A steady pattern of positive experiences mattered more than one spectacular event. That resonates with me.
One reason I chose Belfast is that we don’t have the scale and grandeur of New York City. We have the Colonial Theatre, not Radio City Music Hall. We have high school sports, not the NFL or NBA. We have about 20 miles of working waterfront, not 520. It makes me feel like I belong.
I can be seduced by dreams of big things: winning the lottery, sailing around the world, writing a best-selling book. But I am slowly learning that those things, while fun to imagine, have little bearing on my happiness.
Showing up at the WCY, greeting the people I work with, checking to be sure the chems are right in the pools and the temps are right in the fitness rooms, free coffee(!), the chance to dance with the children in Bus Stop care (and the looks of embarrassment they have for me when the seem me dance!), and the head nods, smiles, and “Hello”s I hear from you throughout the day… Those are a gift.
I don’t know who F.E. Marie is, but I love this quote:“I hope beautiful things happen to you and when they do, I hope you can believe you are worthy of every one of them.” And I hope they happen frequently.
Happy March.
Before I forget, a few things coming up at the Y:
March 6 – We are the host site for the local Special Olympics Swim Meet. If you want to be caught up in true enthusiasm and joy, come by between 9 and 11 to cheer on the athletes. It will lift your whole day.
March 28 & April 5 – Our Annual WCY River Races. It looks to be a great year to run the rivers. We’re introducing a new award — the Viking Cup — for the local college with the greatest participation and fastest time. We hope to inspire a new generation to hop in their canoes and enjoy the nature that surrounds us.
April 25 – We will launch a spring e-motion Movement Community for those grieving a significant loss. If you feel like you are grieving alone and want to join a community that addresses grief through movement, please check this out.
P.S. I feel obligated to add that working out frequently at a lower intensity is often more effective — and less likely to cause injury — than working out infrequently at a higher intensity*. Just part of my job. 🙂
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