Weathering Small Obstacles

A week ago on Bike Tour Colorado I had a collison but not the serious kind we all dread. This run in was with a tiny bee but a tiny bee that was ready to dive bomb near my eye and sting me for all the little guy was worth.  Isn't it these unexpected almost trivial occurances that remind us that every day holds the possibility of change , pain or ecstasy that is largely out of our control. Knowing this we learn to roll with the punches and laugh off little irritations.

Deep down we know that we do have a lot of choice and control. When we let go of excuses and exceptions we can chart a path to achieve most of our goals. We must persist through the "bee stings" in life. So if we want to lose weight we don't let a meal out or a social event derail us. If we want to save money we forgo the depression driven shopping spree. If we want to spend more time with our family we learn to say no to other less important demands.

Sometimes we are more prone to weather the major storms in life and persist with our goals because the need to do so is obvious. It's those little pesky interuptions that seem more likely to cause us to give ourselves permission to deter from our goals "just this once". Just this once can easily turn into a prolonged hiatus from our vision.

So what to do? Awareness is half the battle. Just try to notice what it takes to deter you from your goal. If you need inspiration you still have most of the Tour de France left to see what Lance will do and to remember how he dealt with adversity. Kind of makes my tragic bee sting seem a little silly. But still riding around with a swollen eye could spell the need for a cookie or worse if you and I didn't know better. Choose wisely or at least choose. Don't let today's unpleasant surprises take you some place you really don't want to go.