Daring To Be Abundantly Alive
A ship in
port is safe, but that’s not what ships are built
for.
Grace Murray Hopper
|
It is the day after Labor Day in the
United States. Labor Day is always a significant date on the
calendar for me.
For me, Labor Day is the true beginning
of a new year. Partly because I have spent much of my life
either going to school or teaching school, I tend to measure
the true new year according to academic calendars. Most of
my academic years started after Labor Day.
And partly, Labor Day really does mark
the beginning of a new year for me. My birthday is September
3rd. For a lifetime, my birthday has waltzed with Labor Day,
occurring on Labor Day itself, or a day or two before or after.
I started first grade the day after I
turned six, and college the day after I turned eighteen. I
started graduate school on another September 4th, the day
after a milestone birthday.
And each year, I like to mark the transition
of my birthday and Labor Day by taking time to consider the
year that has past and the year that is to come, to evaluate
the past and plan the future. Although I am a little late
with my annual birthday review and vision session, this year,
I have two new inspirations and challenges to add to my annual
birthday/Labor Day ritual.
Steve Irwin
died doing what he loved best, getting too close to
one of the dangerous animals he dedicated his life to
protecting with an irrepressible, effervescent personality
that propelled him to global fame as television’s
“Crocodile Hunter.”
Associated Press
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14663786/ |
The first inspiration and challenge comes
from the tragic death of Steve Irwin, “The Crocodile
Hunter,” on Labor Day. One of the world’s most
passionate, fearless, and original characters died in a freak
accident. The man who never met an animal he didn’t
love, died while filming on the Great Barrier Reef. How ironic
that a man who loved so passionately died as the result of
a stingray barb to the heart.
No one would ever accuse Steve Irwin
of restraint. He lived his life at full tilt. He never held
back, and rushed in where no one else would dare to go to
get closer to his beloved creatures.
Not surprisingly, in an era when every
news item is supposed to offer another point of view, local
TV coverage has followed up coverage of Irwin’s death
with a somber interview with a psychiatrist who is attempting
to explain why Irwin was a risk-taker.
Security is
when everything is settled, when nothing can happen
to you; security is the denial of life.
Germaine Greer
|
It might be true that risk-taking gave
Irwin a thrill, and that such risk-taking was hard-wired in
Irwin’s brain. But to follow clips of Irwin wrestling
crocodiles or dangling huge snakes over his head while yelling
“Crikey!” with such expert assessment of Irwin’s
character seemed unworthy to mark the passing of someone who
lived his life without limits. It’s something like standing
on the rim of the Grand Canyon for the first time, experiencing
awe at the sight, and then being nagged to be careful about
getting too close to the edge.
From Steve Irwin, I have another piece
to add to my annual evaluation. Have I lived passionately
or safely? What would it be to live my next year with the
same sense of passionate dedication to something I love? Or
will I play it safe, and worry about what others might say
about my behavior?
The other inspiration and challenge comes
from the example of my daughter’s Irish boyfriend. This
year, my daughter fixed a wonderful birthday dinner, complete
with cake and ice cream. One of the topics of conversation
was his triathlon training schedule. In addition to holding
a high tech position in Silicon Valley, he is undergoing rigorous
training for competing in triathlons.
When he first started training for a
triathlon, he had run marathons, but he had never learned
to swim. So he took some swimming lessons and then entered
his first triathlons. Not surprisingly, the swimming part
of the triathlon was his weakest event.
As my daughter says about him, he succeeds
at anything he starts because he is determined. The words
“no” and “can’t” don’t
exist in his vocabulary.
If you’re
never scared or embarrassed or hurt, it means you never
take any chances.
Julia Sorel
|
He was barely a beginner in swimming,
but he entered the triathlon anyway. He wasn’t afraid
of looking foolish. He knew he wasn’t competitive because
he didn’t swim well enough. However, he didn’t
let his weak swimming ability stop him from entering the event.
There is something empowering about simply
starting and learning as you go. He continues to work with
coaches to improve his technique in running, biking, and swimming.
And each time he enters another triathlon, he moves up in
the standings. His success secret is more than determination.
He is also disciplined. He follows his rigorous training schedule
faithfully. For example, he planned to go for a 40 mile bike
ride on Labor Day. As he put it, it takes a lot of time, but
he has learned to be very efficient in his time.
From my daughter’s boyfriend, I
have an example of determination and discipline, to ask myself:
Am I am willing to do what I am not really good at doing,
without worrying about not doing it well enough? And most
importantly: Do I have the discipline to start where I am
and continually work on improvement?
Please know
that I am aware of the hazards. I want to do it because
I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men
have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but
a challenge to others.
Amelia Earhart
|
Whenever your birthday, Labor Day marks
a place in the calendar to begin a new phase of your life.
I invite you to join me in using these examples of two very
determined and passionate men, to be braver and more willing
to live your life with enthusiasm, determination, and discipline.
This is the essence of daring to be abundantly alive.
For Your Abundant Success,
Kalinda Rose Stevenson
|
