I have always wondered what makes people do crazy things. Like climb Mount Everest, or pull a 1000 pound sled across the Antarctic. Well, in many people’s minds I just finished something “crazy.” I ran a 50 mile race without stopping, except for the couple of times that I had to use the porta-potty. Come to think of it, I might be able to design a better interior of porta-potties for ultra marathon events, perhaps I should quit my day job and provide a porta-potty as a service offering for sporting events! Ok. that is stupid. But that is the point of this blog.
You see, now I know and understand one of the reasons people do crazy things. You see around mile 10, I still had thoughts rolling around in my head. Thoughts about my job, my problems, my worries and a whole bunch of really silly things, like starting a porta-potty company. Then mile 25 comes around, and things are starting to get serious. I am starting to really focus just on survival. Now the only thoughts that are coming to my mind are mission critical. It is as this point that I reach a point of mental clarity. Then mile 40 comes around. Now I am looking for thoughts to distract myself from the pain, the overwhelming fact that I have another 10 miles to go. Then my thought drift to what is really important in my life. With a sudden burst of clarity, I now know what is really important to me. What I really am made of.
This complete clarity, this burning away of all the dross and getting down to the pure metal of your soul is highly valuable. It is not easy to achieve when you are going through your daily life. When you are feeling nauseous, stumbling down a rocky trail, and fumbling around with your headlamp in the pitch black of night, you come to a shocking and sudden realization of what you are capable of.
This is self realization. This is achieving actualization.
Guy Reams
