Pushing Limits

 

Like so many around the world, I was awed by the persistence, endurance, and incredible human spirit exhibited by Diana Nyad in her 53-hour swim from Cuba to Florida.

Amazingly, after her long ordeal, Nyad still had the energy and mental awareness to inspire others. In spite of a swollen tongue and lacerations in her mouth from the salt and face guard she wore to avoid jellyfish stings, she managed to tell others to “never give up” and believe “you’re never to old to live your dreams.”

Now, I’m not much of a swimmer. I’ve always admired and never achieved that regular pace you see with serious swimmers – stroke, stroke, breathe on the left, stroke, stroke, breathe on the right – seemingly with so little effort. I’m strictly a breathe on the right type. And I know I waste a lot of energy when I swim.  My attempts at laps or long stretches never last long and inevitably result in undignified sputtering, jerkiness, and gasping for air.

But the idea of setting goals for yourself, pushing your limits, and following your passions – those are things that do resonate with me. Whether or not you achieve the goal isn’t even the point. It’s the path on which it launches you that matters. It’s the things you learn about yourself and the unexpected turns, embarrassments, and rewards that make it worthwhile.

Unlike Diana Nyad, no one would use the terms “extreme” or “athlete” to describe me. But I do like to be active. I’m pretty energetic and somewhat daring. And I’m not averse to pushing my limits from time to time. I find it liberating, in fact, since it requires shedding the burden of fear and going beyond the familiar.

Sometimes, it means taking on a big step, like the time I jumped off a cliff in Peru. I was strapped into a parasail harness, with a pilot behind me working all the controls. So, it wasn’t physically difficult. 

But it was a bold thing to do for someone as afraid of heights as I am. It was also an apt symbol for a new life chapter in a country where I had just arrived and didn’t speak the language, know anyone, or have any anchors. The flight was exhilarating. And the personal and professional outcomes of our 3 ½ years in Peru even greater than I could have anticipated.

The exhilaration

of jumping

off a cliff

But other times, it’s the seemingly small steps that take courage or resolve. 

Recently, I had to drive through some flooded roads in Lake Nakuru National Park. The water level is the highest any of the game wardens have seen.

Flooded waters and roads of Lake Nakuru

Many of the roads at Lake Nakuru are totally impassible at the moment. But we were on one that was only partially flooded. And the vehicles ahead of us were getting through. But I did have to grit my teeth and push myself to follow their lead. Unlike my husband, I’m not crazy about driving through rivers and flooded roads, even in a snorkel-equipped Land Cruiser. I’m not crazy about rickety bridges either, while we’re at it. And there’s my recent experience of being stuck in the mud for hours in a remote place surrounded by wild animals (see earlier blog: http://africagwinners.blogspot.com/2013/08/stuck-in-mud.html)  

But I did it. I did it, because sometimes you just have to. Sometimes, there’s just no turning back and, as Nyad suggests, you can’t give up - even with the small stuff.   

And that's the real secret of being inspired by a super achiever like Nyad. I don't aspire to great physical feats. I like to run, but hate to race. And I firmly believe that a bad run can still be an excellent walk - with no shame involved.

What really matters is that age isn't the obstacle, nor even physical endurance. It's the emotional resilience that pushes us beyond old limits. Nyad admits that emotional strength was an important part of her training and success - that, and singing old Beatles or Neil Young songs to herself to help pass the many boring hours of constant swimming.

Follow your dreams, she says. For me, living in Africa is indeed following my dreams. And as the Beatles would say, Tomorrow Never Knows, so:

Listen to the color of your dreams

It is not leaving, it is not leaving

So play the game "Existence" to the end

Of the beginning, of the beginning