Published in the July 6 – 19, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Diana Wood
Diana Wood
I looked down a 55-foot drop from the platform I was standing on and paused to take mental inventory of how again it was that I invited this circumstance which was about to end with my voluntary leap off into the open zipline abyss. It seemed like just minutes before I was sitting in a plush 30-seat bus transport that had rounded the corner of the meticulously manicured landscaped entrance that poured us into the Sojourn Adventures ropes and element course.
I had traveled from Morgan Hill to John’s Creek, Georgia, to be part of a group of 12 people determined to test ourselves both mentally and physically. The people at Soujourn Adventures coached us to take on our very own sojourn and to be prepared to see our life experiences, whether past or present, take the form of a living metaphor. Although just minutes before the sky was clear, as we walked into the woods to our final course element it began to rain.
While we waited for the element to be set up, I stood in the middle of the woods, head down, staring at the leaf covered dirt as it turned to mud. I mentally transported to a time in my life when any and everything that could go wrong in fact went wrong. Just as the rain was currently pouring down so did the rain of those painful challenges pour into my life.
My memory was interrupted by our course guide asking for volunteers. Next thing I knew I was going through the safety check process: helmet secure, check; waist harness snug, check; integrity of safety line confirmed, check; and so it began.
Reach, then step, reach, then step — much like the cadence one takes when setting out to accomplish a goal. Unexpectedly my progression was interrupted by my helmet falling off my head.
The only thing keeping the helmet from falling to the muddy floor below was the chin strap that had slipped down to my neck.
As often experienced when headed toward a dream or a goal, an unexpected hiccup. Do I stop? Do I go on? I remembered and was comforted by the fact that I was tethered to a secure source that would not let me fall. I chose to go on.
The climb up the pole became more and more challenging the higher I went. In fact, I no longer could continue with my reach, then step rhythm. I had to adjust to a step then trust that I could reach the currently unreachable next peg without losing my balance and falling.
The act of trust translates into the equivalent of ones progression toward a dream or a goal and the need to trust the process. There will be times that we must step without knowing if we will be able to reach our next goal and regardless of results we must trust it was the right move to make at the time. As long as we stay tethered to our dreams and goals, our efforts, no matter the challenges, will enable the trust needed to power our continued persistence.
Ironically, as soon as I pulled myself up onto the top of the platform rising five stories high, the rain stopped, the clouds cleared and I had a completely different perspective of my climb. I leaped off the platform with full abandon, feeling the thrill of freedom fed by the accomplishment of my goal as I ziplined through the trees into an open field.
Embrace your living metaphor, trust your climb regardless of the weather and jump from your 55-foot platform into the freedom of accomplishing your goals.
Morgan Hill resident Diana Wood is the president and CEO of Wood Motivation, a certified independent John Maxwell Team coach, speaker and trainer. She can be reached at [email protected].
