One of the things I’ve learned over the years is to stick to the things you love – even when you might not be extremely excited about them at that very moment. The classic example for me is cycling. I was the most excited I ever was about it the day I sat down on my bike in the south end of Delhi. Some summer mornings are so special, it starts getting light not long after 5:00 AM, the birds are so noisy and you know it’s going to be a delightful hot day filled with interesting adventures and joy. But then there are days that don’t advertise as effectively.
The longest distance I ever rode in one day was about 240 kilometres – just under 150 miles. The morning was cloudy and even though it was summer, it was just above 10°C (50°F) and misting. By the time I finished my first 60 kilometres, it was pouring cold horrible rain. It was absolutely miserable and I was shivering in my shorts and short-sleeve jersey. I had a choice, I could turn back, continue forward and risk hypothermia or figure something out. In the end I picked “Option C” – in the last big town before the ride got very rural, I stopped at Walmart and bought a rain jacket. You’d think my brain which is always so good at warning me “It’s going to rain, and likely be cold!” would’ve been saying “See? I told you so!” but they were nowhere to be found. I actually had a great time. I put on the jacket, rode through the downpour until it eventually slowed down. 120 km later, at Ontario’s only covered bridge, I felt pretty great.
The rest of the trip was still difficult. I had to dig deep to find the energy to push myself all that way. (But I also had to eat lots of delicious fast food, donuts and candy to power myself – poor me!) but there was never a truly unpleasant moment. Instead, I enjoyed every minute, even the part riding downhill in the cold pouring rain with the rain falling so hard it felt like little needles in my face.
This week I had a smaller discomfort related to cycling. I did get out the door early, 5:15 AM on a Thursday morning. It was even a little bit cooler than I’d like but still manageable with shorts though I was a bit cold at first. The ride, however, was gorgeous. It was early enough that there were hardly any cars and dark enough that even in the big city stars were visible. I had time to ride almost double my usual amount before work which was amazing. I mean, just look at the kind of morning it was:
Absolute magic, eh? But you’re missing the best part: when I was riding along some rolling hills in a big field, there was fog in the small valleys. I turned on my camera to capture the effect which, with my headlight, reminded me of being in a plane just at cloud level. Sometimes I’d peek above the clouds then descend back down in. There were few people out but sometimes a person would just appear out of the mist and we’d startle each other. At that hour sometimes I can smell others before I see them. Skunks smell a little even when they haven’t sprayed and so I’ve smelled them before seeing them. On this day I smelled cigarette smoke and thought maybe someone was smoking in their nearby fenced in yard but it turned out to be someone far ahead of me given away by the wind. It was magical! But technology was not on my side and my battery was not seated in the GoPro so nobody but me will ever know how beautiful that was.
Half way through the ride, the trail I was on crossed a road but on this day there was a huge fence blocking off the road. I rode along the fence around the construction area and then picked up the path soon after. Suddenly my steering got really wobbly and sluggish. It took a minute to register but I had a puncture. I stopped here:
There I was, 6:00 AM, nobody around, on a path in the middle of the woods with nothing to fix my tire with. There was only one thing to do: I walked about 20 minutes in my cycling shoes, and caught a bus home. When I got home I messaged my boss to tell her I was running late and rather than be late for work I’d work from home that day she said “Flat tires are never fun.”
It would’ve sounded weird but in my mind I disagreed. Even that was a small adventure and I enjoyed solving the problem.
It was another challenge to try to fix the tire – the new bike’s tires are really tight on the rim and it took forever to wrestle it off and then I couldn’t get it back on. I decided then to switch to tubeless, self-sealing tires and let the bike shop deal with it. When I dropped them off yesterday they let me know the tire had been slashed. Likely there was some glass or metal I didn’t see in the construction area. So that bike will be out of commission for a week or so.
When I remember this: that my brain lies and says I don’t like discomfort, I have a good time. Whether that means riding my bike at 5:30 AM, cooking a big dinner when I’d rather have takeout or reading a novel instead of browsing social media, I’m happier. But it takes training and persistence – doing the things even when it isn’t fun or comfortable. That persistence teaches your mind that “uncomfortable” does not mean “impossible” or even “unpleasant” and that while bigger rewards may come in the end, the real rewards are to be found during the challenges.
I thought of that today when I realized it was September 21st. People around my age or with certain music tastes will remember that this date is the one mentioned in Earth, Wind, and Fire’s “September”. And now this song reminds me of the power of persistence.
Back on September 21, 2016, Demi Adejuyigbe created a silly little one-minute long video for this song. He then did it 5 more times, each time getting a bit more sophisticated, involving more people, adding in amazing fundraisers and eventually even getting the attention of the musicians who made the song themselves. I demand you watch all six videos in order here. It will take less than 15 minutes. And watch all the way to the end.:
What does this have to do with cycling, cooking, learning a language, or anything else you love doing? The process is not without effort, challenge, struggle, difficulty and even downright unpleasant moments. Sometimes there are failures, and if you’re doing it publicly, there might not be the recognition you want, and if you’re doing it for yourself you may not always give yourself recognition. But if you love doing it, keep doing it. The journey is what you’re there for. And if you’re making content for others, your people will appreciate it. In all cases you’ll get better at it, and maybe in the end you’ll even get bigger recognition. (But even if you don’t, you’re doing it for your enjoyment anyway, right? RIGHT?!)
So, do what you love. Do it even on the days when you question whether you love it or not, and you’ll feel all the better for it.
And if you think I’m saying this in some sort of a “Hey, you, you should be as good as I am and overcome the laziness and self-doubt.” know that I’m writing this as much to future-me as to present-you. In much the same way that I create cycling videos like this to remind future lazy-me how much fun I have when I walk out the door. I thought about this one and often watched it when I was sick with Covid and it’s the one I will turn on when I think “Maybe I’ll just sleep in…” So keep on doing what you love, and remind yourself frequently how much you love it.
