March Madness Check-In Day 22 #WIPMadness - How Motivated Are You?

Last week I went for a "hike" with my family. I put "hike" in quotes, because, to be honest, whenever I hear about people going for a "hike," they're usually just talking about going for a walk in the woods.

We have a fairly famous "hike" in the Vancouver area called The Grouse Grind. I know people of all shapes and sizes and athletic abilities who have completed this "hike." We have another trail, a little closer to home that is supposedly about half the length of The Grouse Grind, and my family and I decided to try it as a warm up to help decide if we wanted to give The Grouse Grind a try. You see, The Grouse Grind is so busy with people, that you're not allowed to turn back part way and go downhill. Once you've started it, you must complete the "hike."

So we headed out to The Abby Grind, stocked with a bit of water and sweaters, since it was a cool day. Well, the sweaters came off during the first fifty feet. My eleven-year-old son took off ahead of my husband and I, and I was having trouble keeping up to my husband's giraffe-long legs. But soon my husband petered out. I caught up and then passed him as I put one very slow step in front of the other headed almost straight upward.

My husband was a hesitant participant in this "hike" to begin with, so I wasn't surprised when he said he probably wouldn't push through to the top and planned to turn around. However, my son was now so far ahead of us, above us in the woods of this mountainside, that not only could we not see him, we couldn't even get a reaction from yelling to him.

My lungs were burning, my legs were burning, and I hadn't even reached the halfway mark! But my son was out of reach, my husband was going to be no help in keeping track of him, and so the Mama Bear in me emerged. I sometimes had to stop every four or five steps and pray against heart palpitations, but with my concern for my son in the forefront of my mind, I made it to the top of that mountain!

Sometimes the goal doesn't seem worth it, or the reward doesn't seem like enough, or you may doubt your ability to complete it, or you may just feel really, really tired. But just take a moment and think...what if you HAD to complete your goal this month? What if something dire was at stake? No matter how far behind you are, I'll bet you could do it, couldn't you.

I'm behind, but I pictured that scenario for a minute, and the truth is, I can do this. I can make it happen. I just need to reach deep and pull it out of myself. How about you? CAN you make your goal happen this month? How proud would you be of yourself if you did, especially if it meant overcoming some pretty huge lapses and obstacles?

I'm proud of myself for completing The Abby Grind. I'm even considering attempting The Grouse Grind.

Also, I no longer put the word hike in quotations.

Don't forget to check in over at Kim's blog tomorrow!