It was quite shocking to see the news today in Connecticut. 26 dead; 20 of them little kids. Most folks in the USA do not agree with me, but we need to start imposing SEVERE restrictions on gun sales. I cannot even imagine what the parents of the kids who died are going through. Our thoughts and prayers are with all the folks affected.
I’ve been itching to write this blog post since last night. It is not about my workout session as I didn’t even do anything today. I am still a bit under the weather; hence am taking it easy for one final day (although I did run a bit yesterday – read yesterday’s post).
So I was surfing the web yesterday and came across a recent interview on the Oakley website by none other than Chrissie Wellington. After her recent retirement from Ironman competition, she was asked as to what is next. Her answer was absolutely Zen. So very Chrissie…
“I need to give myself the time to explore, to open doors, to hopefully have some other, unexpected doors open in front of me. I need to wander a little knowing that the ‘right’ path and the next goal will emerge through the mist.”
I read and re-read it and wow; what a perfect thought. I know I am being redundant, but I feel the urge to type it again, “I need to wander a little knowing that the right path and the next goal will emerge through the mist.” WOW! She is so totally a Jedi knight. Yoda would be proud of her.
So I engaged in an email conversation with Chrissie yesterday. It was mostly about my recent Marathon and how I had to dig deep to finish and blah blah blah.
The conversation turned. Since we are looking for a few year-end charities (for selfish tax-deductible reasons), what is better than supporting causes that Chrissie supports? She recommended supporting Girls Education Nepal (GEN). I have wanted to go to Nepal since I was a kid; there’s a place called Chitwan National Park in the Himalayan foothills where you can go elephant-back to look for tigers. I casually mentioned this to Chrissie and what I got back was a picture of a world champion impishly imitating an elephant.
Yes, Chrissie is the ultimate Jedi Elephant!
What makes Chrissie special is not just her Ironman talent and her four world championships. What makes her special is not just her conviction to the causes she believes in. What makes her special is not just that she can sit down for an interview and completely immerse in conversation to speak from her heart. What makes her special is not just her absolute transparency and honesty about who she is and what she believes in. So what makes her so special? It is her uncanny ability to connect with everyone who is willing to watch and listen. It is her uncanny ability to make a difference in people’s lives. When we were in Hawaii, she told me this, “I am just an ordinary girl from Britain with an extraordinary tolerance for pain. All this is still very surreal to me.” By “all this” she meant the four world-championships.
Chrissie is the ultimate role model. Her physical and mental capacity have been exhibited time and again during her incredible 13-0 record in Ironman competitions. Her heart is exactly at the right place; just look at the causes she supports! We have all seen her charisma, aura and presence when she talks. Her voice has intensity and passion; and the British accent makes it all the more enchanting.
Chrissie’s chapter in competitive Ironman competition may have come to an end. But we can’t wait for the next door to open up through the mist. We’ll be watching…and following.