The Cold, Hard Truth

It’s cold out. Maybe the cold air changes the way we think. Maybe the changing seasons clear out some of the clutter in our heads. I went for a morning run today, and it was like I was going for the first time. The chill of the cold outside, the fresh air, hearing my feet pound the ground, and my breath pacing quicker and heavier. I used to run a lot. I get a lot of mental benefit from it, but for a while now, I’ve taken it out of my morning routine. Maybe it’s time for a change. May be.

I was needing my head cleared to be honest. I’ve been micromanaging quite a lot these days. It occurred to me this morning how ridiculous our internal head talk can be. Especially, concerning personal achievement and goals. I mean this not just in our performance in our work lives or in sport, but also in our personal lives and relationships. 

Erin and I are very intentional about our relationship with each other, and we work well together. We are, however, not immune to disagreements. Sometimes, these disagreements can be so straining emotionally that it can feel like you’re “back tracking”. Even in creating personal habits for my character as in a morning run in my routine. If I don’t get it right I feel like I’ve failed.

This got me thinking about this idea of our “journey”.

Picture this: In our journey, we are walking along and there are hills and valleys and mountains. Let’s say we are in a difficult part of the journey. (Because honestly, when things are going great, we are too busy enjoying ourselves). 

Sometimes, we come to great challenges, and it takes everything in us to take the next step forward. We don’t move very fast, but the obstacle is much more difficult. It’s relative, and even if we do happen to fall and slide down a bit.. we have had the experience and learned from it. The next time we come to that same challenge, we will be better equipped. Is this not worth failing? These small failures don’t make the entire journey useless. After all, we’ve come a great distance. The time and experience is valuable enough. Even if it wasn’t all great.