We Take This Road Alone

It’s the start of the tournament, the race or the match. The crowd is pumping, participants are shoulder to shoulder, and looking from the outside it looks like a crowded scene. There are many people milling around, and the noise rises and falls as people chatter excitedly about the competition, the game, the fights, or the road ahead. This seems like a shared space … and it is on the surface, especially for those who may not have learned to listen.

For those who take to the competition floor, or look over their handlebars at the asphalt rolling out before them, flex and stretch their legs before the gun goes off, there is deep breathing, an inner voice that serves to manage the mounting adrenalin in the excitement of the start. When the start gun fires or order is called for the fight to begin, suddenly the participant is alone in a crowded space. The jolly façade of camaraderie dramatically falls away. It’s time to deliver the goods and that is something we can only do alone. It’s time to climb deep inside and haul out the gifts we’ve been preparing through training, learning, growing and evolving.

The strengths we hope we will bring forward on the day are focused on while the weaknesses we secretly harbour, we try to deny as our minds turn inward and we face ourselves in Truth.

And we ask ourselves, “Have we put in enough training? Have we invested enough time on the floor? Have we earned the miles on our legs? Can we cope with the big clashes against other individuals? Have we done what it takes?”. Can we truly answer “Yes” to these honest questions?

And then it begins. We win some, we lose some. We experience the exhilaration of victory, the glory of the win, or we feel that crush of defeat and rage within hoping for someone else to blame other than yours truly!

During my long and lonely training routines, I learned to make friends with my solitude. In fact, I came to crave it. I needed to be alone with my mind, my heart and my soul to truly unpack and understand myself as my body settled in to contend with the physical challenges in whichever sporting activity I was busy with. Hours on the road. Hours in the dojo. Hours building my bodily structure in the gym to surpass the demands I was asking not only my body but my mind and soul to meet. All of these hours took me journeying into my deeper self.

Whilst we may think we are on a shared journey, in truth, we are not. We are not part of a mindless collective. We are souls unique in the space of the mind of the creator. We are solo travelers who need to understand our own minds amidst the noise of this loud, loud world. We have to silence the noise to truly hear our higher mind speak – and it likes to speak in a whisper. But if you quiet your chaotic thoughts, close your mouth and turn your mind inward, the whisper becomes clearer, even a little louder and it helps you resonate with your true purpose. Win or lose in the sports arena, this road we take alone will introduce you to yourself anew each time and you will know yourself better.

Don’t be fooled. Don’t believe in the cacophony of chaos. The friends can wait. The fans are fleeting. Take a moment from the madding crowd to turn your mind inward. Listen to the whispering voice and learn to know the deeper you. Although we are surrounded by many, we take this road alone.

Own the journey.