Living the Future in the Present

What started out as an idea that I thought was pretty cool has now turned into a true bucket list item. I used to be a fairly regular hiker. I've backpacked about 200 miles of the Appalachian Trail, did a charity hike in which I hiked 28 miles in a day, and have spent a lot of time going up and down mountains in the Smokies.

I don't know why I fell out of the habit, but my last serious hiking days were around 10 years ago. I was looking for some sort of goal to set for myself to get me back in the groove. I discovered that there are numerous long trails in Great Britain including the Hadrian's Wall Walk. The path covers 84 miles and follows the route of the ancient wall built by Roman Emperor Hadrian more than 2,000 years ago. There are points at which you are walking right by the actual wall as you walk from the Atlantic Ocean to the North Sea. So I have set my sights and made the reservations to go to England at the end of May This is a goal worthy of the training time!

Ah yes, the training. I'm currently in no shape at all for an adventure of this size, so I began a training plan last week. This in itself is a new set of goals and discipline as I'm now getting up early and heading for the fitness center for more exercise than I've done in a long time. Part of the training involves walking distances that will increase as the plan gets closer to May. The very first day that I was to walk for a good distance was an absolutely dreary day. There was heavy fog. There were even a few drizzles in that fog and some wind. It was a miserable early morning.

But then I realized, the weather in May in the part of England I'll be walking can be dreary with fog, rain, and wind coming off the oceans. Basically, the weather that was happening last week is weather that I could very well face during the walk. So, I did it. I didn't like it, but I did it. Hopefully, if I do face those conditions in May, I'll at least will have had some experience with it.

It reminded me of a couple of things. First, I thought of an exercise used by the ancient Stoics. They would practice imagining the worst thing that could happen and either come up with plans to neutralize the threat, or practice dealing with the emotions that would come with it. What would it feel like to lose a loved one? What would it feel like to suddenly lose a job and be in financial distress? How would I handle becoming sick? The second thing is related. As a performing musician, it's always a great idea to rehearse as much as possible in similar circumstances as the performance. We can adapt, but it's easier to focus on performing music if you don't have to think of all the new stuff that you'r having to adapt to.

I have no idea what the weather conditions will be like in May in Carlisle, England. But I do know that I've experienced pretty bad stuff in Knoxville, TN and not only got through it but felt great that I have. Think before you experience. Practice like you're going to perform. Prepare for adversity and pain in the future by practicing it in the present. I believe the payoff will be worth the effort.

Mike