I am not a patient person. Yet I want many things which require waiting.
Or, more accurately, I want many things which require extended efforts.
I want my knee to not hurt anymore. My physical therapy should rehabilitate my knee under the guidance of a medical professional.
I want to go backpacking. Our backpacking trips have been put on hold because of the unknown of my knee.
I want to be able to run a 5K. A good aerobic walk is challenging enough for my body at the moment. I have 7 weeks to prepare for my first 5K race of the year. Soon, I will ease into run/walks.
I want strong feet that are capable of barefoot running. I am working on building their strength enough to walk barefoot for a day.
I want to be earning money from my novellas, the Erin Mark Adventures. I am in the middle of writing the first Erin Mark Adventure.
I want my SCUBA drysuit to keep me dry, so I have enough faith in it to dive in 38 degree local water. My drysuit has been leaking all winter. This weekend, I test the most recent repair attempt.
Although far from my goals, I have achieved victories along the way.
I had no stabbing pain in my knee for the last two weeks.
We are car camping this weekend, bringing our bikes.
I firmly established the habit of walking daily, for at least one mile.
My feet are strong enough to start transitioning into minimalist shoes. I ordered a pair that shipped today.
The first Erin Mark Adventure is coming along nicely, with serious progress being made on a daily basis.
There is a new, professionally applied patch on my drysuit.
I will focus on all the small achievements that are currently in my life, instead of focusing on all that I am waiting for, on what I can’t do right now, on what is undone. Life is a process, an endlessly flowing river, and I am making progress. That makes me happy. It brings me joy.
In the adventure of life, I will celebrate the journey.
In your own life, what signs of progress bring you joy? Share in the comments below.
I think it is good to make a list of your wants. It helps to put them more clearly in focus and make them more concrete. Also SO good to temper that “want” list with a list of accomplishments – however great or small – because again, it helps you to clearly see direction, progress. You know, in doing this, that you aren’t just spinning your wheels. And I am encouraged reading it, because I know I am not alone in acknowledging the challenge of appreciating the small – as well as the huge – accomplishments. Most days really are a series of small goals being met rather than milestones. So really, it IS all in our attitude how we tackle and approach these things. Kudos! And happy car camping. =) (By the way, have you heard of the book Car Camping, by Mark Sundeen? He also just came out with the new book, The Man who Quit Money.)
Thanks for the references. Mark Sundeen doesn’t ring a bell, but The Man who Quit Money sounds familiar. I will have to look into his work.
Today I was talking to my sister, and she thought I should go re-read this post. I laughed and told her that half the reason I write them is to convince myself of their conclusion. Ah Attitude, something I must constantly work on.