I was a half decent 800-meter runner in high school, not great, but I ran with a lot of heart, and sometimes I placed near the front.
It’s a tough race, as it requires both speed and stamina. It is also tactical. If you go out too fast, you choke. But if you don’t make your move, you can get left behind.
You have to pace yourself. And sometimes it can feel like the race is over, and then something shifts, an opening appears, and you push through your resistance and surprise yourself.
Here’s a video of Dave Wottle from the 1972 Olympics. In the first lap he is dead last and trailing by an embarrassing margin. He said once in an interview, “I wasn’t thinking about winning. I just didn’t want to embarrass my country.”
And so, he sets his sights on the guy in front of him. He passes him. And then the next guy. And the next guy. Until he is approaching the leaders. Well, watch it for yourself.
And remember, our goal isn’t to win. Our goal is simply to show up on the page in a state of willingness and wonder. The writing gods will take care of the rest.
Go Dave!
Go all of us!
Learn more about marrying the wildness of your imagination to the rigor of structure in The 90-Day Novel, The 90-Day Memoir, or The 90-Day Screenplay workshops.
The Price of Joy is Grief