I’ll admit it. I’m angry. I’m frustrated. I’m more than a little anxious. I’ve been procrastinating writing about it because I haven’t been sure which direction to go.
The last couple of years have been one struggle after another and it’s culminated in my early retirement, a trainwreck, and now the Covid pandemic and all of it’s aftermath. Many of you are also going through some difficult times. My new career is to help guide people through tough times, but I’ve been hesitant to jump in because I feel like I have to solve my own before I can help others. Here’s the thing, if we wait until we have it all together before we help others, we will never get to be the people we are created to be.
If you have read much of my writing, you know I get a lot of life analogies from running. Yesterday I got to run 12 miles of pavement along the banks of Lake Natoma.This is my longest run so far in my training for St. George Marathon, scheduled for early October. Before the accident, I ran several ultra marathons (50k, 50miles) and a common phrase comes from the title of a great book, Relentless Forward Progress, by Bryon Powell. Simply moving forward is key to completing any long distance run, as it is to getting through tough times in life.
This becomes especially clear to me when faced with an uphill climb. Even more so towards the end of a run. I have developed a strategy for these hills when I am tired. I’m sure I’m not the first to come up with this, but it works for me and I am constantly, and repeatedly, modifying my strategy. Typically, when I am running, I look far ahead to see the next turn, the next landmark, the finish line, glancing down often enough to not trip and fall, I keep my gaze towards the goal. When I have a tough hill to climb, however, I shorten my gaze. Trying to look at the top of the hill is daunting, maybe even intimidating. So, I look just a few steps ahead. It’s not very steep for the next three steps. I can do this. Then I can do the next three, and then the next three, until I crest the hill. At the top of the hill I can see far off into the distance (or to the next hill) and then I can reassess and make a new plan to reach the next goal.
Right now a lot of us are fighting a steep uphill. So here is what I’m trying to do and maybe it will help you too. Mostly, I keep my eyes looking ahead, towards the goal. I keep moving forward and take note of progress I make, no matter how small, or if it’s emotional, physical, or financial. Sometimes I have to shorten my gaze and focus on very small progressions. The top of the hill is too far and too steep. I can take little steps a few at a time. I keep my head down and push through. Other times, I can look further ahead. I can see out into the future and make a clear plan for how to get to where I need to be. Sometimes I just have to stop for a minute and appreciate where I am and where I have come from.
Truth be told, the future is really uncertain right now, but those who have a goal and keep pushing towards it, even if it’s just small steps at a time, will eventually get there. Don’t wait to have it all together to lend a hand to someone else. The hand you reach out to help, just may be the hand that pulls you up too.
