Sometimes it Works

No one is quite sure as to why sometimes the magic works, and sometimes not. With a respectful nod to Chief Dan George and the screenwriters of Little Big Man, the 1970 Oscar winning film starring a very young Dustin Hoffman as a very old Jack Crabb, this line has always struck a positive cord with me. The Chief, symbolic Grandfather to Jack, has been informed that he is still in this world after a beautiful closing soliloquy and a quick good-bye. Upon learning of magics failure to deliver the desired result, the Chief simply shrugs it off, delivers his line and heads back down the mountain for a smoke. It is a classic scene from a marvelous, sprawling epic Western. 

But it reaches further, way past, the traditional expected accolades and awards signifying the best of Hollywood, by year, trade and genre. The most recent pop culture example can easily be understood with a quick comparison of wizards to their non-believing muggle counterparts. There are those that believe in the magic and those that don’t. We know this to be true. Why anyone would choose NOT to believe in magic is beyond my power to understand and my ability to forgive. It is one classic example of one of the many things wrong with human beings. 

I was reminded of this phenomenon, again, early this morning. But it started last night. 

Last evening as we finished up a rather challenging 2x20 set in the WFPB, World Famous PowerBarn, the question of balance popped up, I was asked the reasoning behind the structure of our schedule. The ones following specific guidelines to allow optimal physical response in three different disciplines in the shortest period of time? Good one!

The reasons why we structure our work, alternating intensities, muscle groups, durations, distances and frequencies is to achieve a dynamic and flowing, safe and effective increase to our individual ability to adapt. Adaptation to the workload that will eventually take us to the mountaintop of greater health, optimal fitness and the achievement of our goals, all this without having to quit our jobs or terminate our relationships. It is time management 101 with a minor in exercise physiology. Building in the appropriate time for rest, recovery, strength work, a career and a robust social life are all as important to the triathlete as swimming faster, biking stronger and running better. Without structure you are like a rowboat adrift in an angry sea of chaos. Everyone has a balance tipping point the same way that everyone has a varying tolerance for pain. We need to find our balance and diligently work towards maximizing our strengths while always mindful of the room for improvement with our weakness. This is what we mean by balance not standing on one leg with eyes closed. All this, in sum, can be perceived as work, usually too much work by those who fail to add the element of magic to the mix. Without the pixie dust we are mindless robots moving refrigerators and color TVs. The dream must be a part of the process, seeing ourselves both on the righteous road fighting the good fight and victorious at the conquest of the demon fears and shadow monsters that keep us from it. Believe! Dream! Have Faith. Sing the song of your soul to the birds and the wind and the sun. This is the power of the cosmos we celebrate and engage with. You can accept the reality of this or pretend that it is only for fairy tales and children books. You can grab the magic or you can let it slip through your fingers and be gone. Personally I do not have the patience to deal with those that willingly choose to deny. I can lead them to the mountain but what they see there is totally up to them and their place on the transcendental time-line of their personal growth. Many people aren’t yet ready to accept this responsibility. I will admit to you here and now that it is a hell of a lot easier to binge soaps than to face your fears. But the life of leisure is not the way of the warrior. We do the hard stuff. We fight. We practice relentlessly and with a passionate sense of purpose. What purpose you ask?

Not sure quite yet. I do know that this is a part of being ready. And when we are ready the purpose will appear. Maybe even sooner than we think. What if that purpose, the very meaning of our lives, was to be revealed to us tomorrow? What would your response be to THAT? Would you ask for something like a second chance? The rule is be ready. When the magic knocks at your door. LET. IT. IN.

Magic is always in the present tense. It is either with us or not. One either accepts the gift or walks away from the golden sacred moment, confused by the strange electricity in the air and feeling lost and lonely. It is our choice. 

Choose magic. Sometimes it works.