photo credit: akunamatata

Answer: a bite at a time

Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.

— Mahatma Gandhi

Sometimes we think too much.  Admittedly we often hear stories that make us wonder if some people ever think, but our predisposition to plan leaves us walking a fine line between thinking, planning and worrying.

In his book, Every Day Deserves a Chance, Max Lucado explains the secret to success in any long-term endeavor.

You last the long race by running short ones.  Don’t swim 2.4 miles; just swim to the buoy.  Rather than bike 112 miles, ride 10, take a break, and bike 10 more.  Never tackle more than the challenge ahead. [emphasis mine]

When we face challenges, we often talk ourselves out of even trying because we project into the future.  We don’t take it buoy-by-buoy or block-by-block or even day-by-day.  We look at the expanse of time in front of us and think, “I could never do this for a day – a week – a month.”

During Lent, Catholics fast for two days, Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  In between, there are weeks when fasting isn’t required.  For Catholics, fasting means only one “normal” sized meal during the fasting day.  The other meals should be smaller than “normal” and no snacks between meals.  Amazingly, drinking is just fine.  As a matter of fact, beer or wine is fine as long as there are no snacks with it. (Seems beside the point, but I don’t make the rules.)

Compared to Yom Kippur or Ramadan, Catholic fasting is fasting-lite.  For various reasons, I’d never fasted before, but this time I decided I would “try” to fast.  I was amazed at how much I obsessed about whether or not I would be able to make it through the day.  Then, I made a decision.  I would do this.  It was only for one day at a time.  Surely, I could do this – and I did.

I learned a very valuable lesson from this little exercise.  By challenging myself to do something for one day, I tested my personal strength and found that my muscles still worked.  Knowing that I had the strength for this little exercise greatly increased my self-confidence.

Perhaps this is a key to change.  One of the reasons that we lose hope is that when we don’t do something we feel we should, we develop a belief that it will always be like that.  We will never change.  If one of your issues is getting to you, choose to fix it for one day.  Prove to yourself that it’s not ALWAYS, it’s SOMETIMES.  It’s not forever.

One Walk at a Time

Before I got Wonder Dog (WD), I had been a total cat person.  Why? – Because I am naturally sedentary. (There’s nothing so comforting as having a good book, a cat and a place to stretch out with both of them on a rainy day.)  Sedentary is actually another way to say that I’m lazy (or at least that’s my self-image).  There was always so much to do at home and I was the only one expected to help.  I hated having to do all the cleaning and I was always looking for a way to get out of it.  I was told that I was lazy and I believed it.  I still do.

Before WD, I needed motivation to get out and walk EVERY DAY.  I fretted about whether I would take her out in the cold and rain.  (I HATE the cold.  I love the desert – even in the summer.)

Before WD, I fretted about finding the time.  Yet, once the decision was made, I stepped up and solved all the problems.  We walk every day, except when it’s really raining. (Have you ever smelled wet dog?  If you have, you know exactly why we don’t walk in the rain.  It’s not the walk, it’s the time to get rid of the wet dog smell.)  When it’s cold, I bundle up.  As she’s gotten older, I drag her out.  So far, we’ve probably taken close to 3000 walks.  That’s over seven years of walks.  I wouldn’t have done that for me, but I do it for her.  And we did it one walk at a time.

Motivated or Discouraged?

When Ellie and I started trying to figure out what Internet business we would start, we looked at lots of different things.  For both of us, the idea of writing articles was a bit daunting.  On days when there are no ideas, it still can be.  But, if my only goal is to get this post done, it may take a while, but it gets done.  I don’t have to solve the problem of what I’ll write tomorrow, or next week, or next month – life will provide the inspiration.  I can’t predict what it will be, but trust me, life provides.

Head Up, Eyes Forward

In the end, it all comes down to balance – having enough vision to be able to pursue a dream without scaring yourself silly with the obstacles.  One trick, I’ve discovered, is to be able to have enough forward vision of where I’m going to be able to see the next marker on the journey.  Then, step out, trusting that if I make it to that marker, I’ll be able to see the next, and the next – and after a while, I’ve made real progress – or taken my dog on 3000 walks.

Another trick is to avoid making obstacles bigger than they really are.  We all have issues that come up over and over for us.  (I can’t believe I ate all that ice cream!)  They show up when we least expect them.  Just the fact that we’ve fallen back into that rut can be more discouraging than it should be BECAUSE we take one slip and turn it into a lifelong failing – past and future.

We can choose to change that.  Look at the number of people who give up sweets, or chocolate or some other favorite for Lent.  For 40 days we choose to make a temporary change in our lives in the service of something bigger than ourselves.  Try changing something that is key to your self-image for one day.  The strength you’ll discover in yourself will encourage all your efforts.

Where do you want to go?  Wherever it is, you only get there one step at a time.  We all do.  Our choice is to stay where we are or to stand up straight, put our shoulders back, head up, eyes forward and GO!!  Why would you choose to do anything else?