Amanda Balionis Celebrates 40th Birthday

Happy Birthday to veteran sports reporter for CBS Sports, Amanda Balionis, who turned 40...

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I’m not sure what I thought this milestone birthday would feel like but I do know what it actually felt like: pure gratitude and joy.

Getting older is an absolute privilege. To do it surrounded by loved ones from all phases of life is the best gift I could have asked for… and Summer Camp for adults is a 12/10 theme ??

Here are some reflections I can’t stop thinking about:

Not having my dad with us for these moments sucks… but I’ll tell ya what, it ensures I NEVER take a moment with my mom for granted.

I remembered how scared I was in 2011 to move to Jacksonville, Florida, where I knew nobody, to work in a sport I knew very little about. It makes me want to hug that girl and tell her that the purpose of that move would change the trajectory of her career and that she’d leave with lifelong best friends.

I looked around this week at my friends I’ve known since high school… some since 4th grade and think: thank god we held on to each other all this time. It’s okay to go through ups and downs, to have lulls in the friendship… but these people will know me better than anyone else. Keep making the bids for connection even when life pulls in different directions.

And lastly, I’m so grateful for trusting the timing of my life. For the jobs I didn’t get and the relationships that didn’t work out.

For anyone who needs to hear this: take the closed doors, the failures, and the rejections as a road map pointing you toward the path that is meant for you. And make sure to love all of the special people who cross your path along the way.

Thank you for coming to my birthday Ted Talk

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