Keep Trying New Things

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I did something new this week. I attended a Cross Country (XC) camp with Connie and Colin in Logan, OH. It was a life changing event.

When I came home from Phoenix, where I had surgery (another life changing event), I didn’t want to do much of anything. It was all that I could to muster up enough ambition to get out of bed. After I mastered that, I wanted to take a shower. That didn’t thrill Connie, because both my eyes were still mostly closed. She didn’t feel comfortable with me in a slippery shower with no handles. Looking back, I can’t say as though I blame her.

Once the doctors at the OSU Driving Rehabilitation program allowed me to drive again, everything that I did was done at 55 MPH or greater. Understandably, that scared the bajeepers out of Connie. But for me, it was a way of growing. It not only allowed me the freedom to get around on my own, but it also marked another task that I had accomplished.

As uncomfortable as it was, I had to continue to try new things. Even trivial things, like getting my picture taken was, and still is, a major event. To this day, when I look in the mirror, I see someone different, someone deformed, someone struggling in his own skin. Regardless, I continue to push past my level of comfort.

This is really no different for you. At least, that is, if you have a growth mindset. This is the type of thinking that will keep you going in good times and bad. It reminds of the line from Shawshank Redemption when Andy said to Red that it comes down to one simple choice, “get busy living or get busy dying”

Cross country camp with 45 like-minded young men and 10 adults reminded me. It reminded me the importance of my state of mind. It reminded me of the first time that I tried something new. It reminded me of Love Energy Audacity and Proof. I’ll tell you more about that later.

What’s your mindset? Are you getting busy living?