by Ellie Bishop McKenzie
When I returned to Dallas from Kilimanjaro I found myself driving to work a few days later stuck in Dallas traffic wanting to cry. I had just finished something so immense and so unimaginably difficult yet exciting and fun that I couldn’t explain it to anyone, but here I was sitting in a line of cars on my way to work in the hamster wheel of life. It felt sad. It felt like I was betraying the magnificence of my adventure to return to mundanity. That is when I realized that “Extraordinary” is not a destination, but the journey itself.
The Odyssey
In Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus faces many obstacles to finally reach home and family. The book ends there, but many of us who have experienced the adventure we call marriage know that returning home was probably just the beginning of another chapter and adventure in itself.
What happens next? That is truly the eternal question. What is the next part of my journey?
This recognition made me think about my New Years resolutions that I recently discovered for 2015 and 2016. At that point in time I had ideas for things I wanted to happen. I wanted my kids to go to college and “find” happiness. But here’s the catch – happiness can’t be found. It is not a thing that can be grasped and suddenly everything is fine – it is forever fleeting. Happiness, instead, is something that happens when you are enjoying the journey.
When Odysseus meets Circe, the witch, and Polyphemus, the cyclops, he is consumed by the current challenge. For me, Kilimanjaro was consuming. But so was the difficult time I was going through with my kids in 2015.
Then What?
The other day I was talking to a friend about her fitness. She wanted to hit certain weight goals and she was frustrated that things were not going as she had planned. My question is always this: Once you hit your goal, Then What? What is the next part of your journey?
What happens when you hit your goal? Is your life now perfect? Do all the planets align and now you can be happy?
Probably not. Because the truth is you have to get back on the hamster wheel of life and then get ready for the next mountain or cyclops or life challenge that is going to hit you in the face. And when that happens things will get rocky again and you will have to fight through until you find your way home.
Does this mean that we shouldn’t care about our weight and our health? Of course not. But it does mean that your weight is not the MOST important part of the puzzle. The important part is using the strength and the confidence you build in the gym to DO amazing things. Sometimes you get to fight cyclopses and climb enormous mountains. Other times you have to deal with work and kids and paying bills.
2025 – Extraordinary New Year!
So as you look at your goals for 2025 I want you to think about your Journey. Let’s look at last year and write down what was good and what was bad. Let’s look at several categories:
- family,
- work,
- mental/spiritual/emotional well-being,
- and physical /fitness well-being.
How did it go? How did the hard things make you better? How did the things that went well make you feel? And, of course…. What happens next in your Extraordinary Journey?
If you get to plan some things to make next year go a little bit better, which way will you steer? Will you spend more time with your loved ones? Will you focus more on your mental, physical, and emotional health? Will you vow to see more of the world? Or will you decide to stay closer to home and focus on your community? How will these things make YOUR Journey more meaningful and extraordinary?
If you would like some help with your Journey, let us know. We would love to help you set some goals and figure out how to meet them. AND, as we approach this new year – THANK YOU to all of you who have allowed us to be a part of your Journey to Extraordinary.
As I believe Odysseus discovered as he returned home to his family – this is just the beginning of the next great adventure! Let’s work together to make it fantastic!
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