It's that time of the year, or soon wil be. New Year's. January 1 is an artificially designated cosmic marker we use to keep track of our lives and our perceptions of how time has passed. Flush with the warm, and all too short, feelings of good will generated by the Christmas season, folks start to look at the year past and to make resolutions for the year to come. It is a time of massive depression amongst the population.
Many state their resolutions in the negative which, for me, doesn't work...and I will tell you why. As stated in the wonderful (no longer in print) little publication, The Handbook of Peak Performance (authored by Ron Hering and yours truly), we think in pictures. As it turns out, we cannot see a picture of something that does not happen. For example, how do you see a picture of yourself not smoking. In attempting to do so, you will see a vision of yourself smoking. Go ahead, try it. You could, instead, chose to see yourself breathing clean air, etc..
To get back to my point, it will soon be time to make resolutions about our lives, and for most of us that includes kayaking. Remember, no negative images. I can't visualize me not lifting my head at the end of a roll, but I can see myself keeping my head down as I come up cleanly.
Perhaps you will come up with something like...in the coming paddling season I am going to get someone to help me learn how to low brace in beam seas and how to stay upright in the surf. A great goal, and one which you can visualize easily (dare to believe).
Or, perhaps your decision is to make this upcoming year the one in which you decide to get a water proof camera and/or work on your photographic techniques. Maybe even experience with black and white (gray-scale) images.
So go for it; and one final thought. When you make these resolutions, actually resolve to do it. Do not use the word "try" in your thinking. The reason you haven't been able to do that roll or brace or whatever is that you have only been trying to do it. Go see Star Wars and remember, "No Try. Do."
Paddle safe...
DS
8 comments:
Thanks, I'll work on that!
I'll be working on my photography ... the b&w's for sure.
Was the camera "piece" aimed at the Capt'n?
I've been busted down to a 2 megapixel camera phone, do to incompetence. :-/
p.s. my camera(s) don't swim well, and boo is smart enough not to let me use hers.
The camera "piece" was just part of the flow and was not meant to target anyone. I enjoy all pics. I like to see what others have seen, and I like to see the way they have chosen to photograph them. I never knew you wee using a low pixel camera. It is the content of your pics that I've enjoyed
"Do or do not, there is no try."
Also, let us not forget "When 900 years old you reach, look as good you will not" and "A Jedi's strength flows from the force, but beware of the dark side!". That could probably be re-worded, something like "A sea kayaker's strength flows from the stroke, but beware of the (something about improper technique or whatever)"
You're correct Ben. Problem is we all have improper technique...and not a Jedi in the group. Perhaps we will be stuck with trying after all.
So is the dark side canoeing? ;-)
Gentlemen, an Olympus 1030SW is what everyone wants for Christmas. Amazing camera. I have the older model (720SW). When we went to Alaska last summer every person in our group pulled out an Olympus, so there must be something there...
Doc, just giving you the business, kida how Eddie Haskel gave the busines to the Beaver... it's all good now that canoelover is getting me an Olympus camera for Christmas!! :-)
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