From the Director’s Desk…The Tortoise and the Hare

The age-old story of the Tortoise and the Hare…

By now you have most likely heard the story of the tortoise and the hare. The hare is confident of winning the race, so he stops, rests, and does silly things along the way. At the same time, the tortoise is slow and steady. The hare obviously loses focus, and allows his overconfidence to get in the way. In the end the tortoise wins! Slow and steady wins the race, as some will say.

Recently I experienced my real live version of the tortoise and the hare.

I set out on my morning run on my own as I typically do. My playlist pushed me in great ways, my thoughts flowed freely while I ran, and my pace was one with which I was happy (I need you to know my pace is NOT fast, and I truly am OK with that). Many people were on the path.  I rather enjoyed watching the different ages, running styles, groups, etc. Running has no limits or restrictions as I watched a man in the push rim wheelchair sail past me.  I love that about running.

But as I was running, a bunny was on the side of the path. He saw me and I saw him. Usually, bunnies hop away when we get near them.  This particular bunny seemed a bit confused, though. Or maybe determined to get ahead of me (as if that would have been a hard task!).  And so, for a little bit, it was like we were racing. Then all of a sudden, the bunny disappeared. But it reminded me of the tortoise and the hare. The tortoise had a destination and a goal in mind. He knew he was slow, but he didn’t let that stop him. He accepted the challenge to the race. The hare sort of had a goal in mind, but no plan to go with it. He was easily distracted and far over-confident, and in the end, that cost him a win.

I am the tortoise in this story.

(And not just my pace, mind you!) Many “hares” exist all around me. Those I feel I may be racing against, even if the competition is more self-induced.  But those “hares” in my life are just like the one in the story; they have arrogance and take off with a sense of “I’m better than you, I’m going to win”, but they don’t have a plan or a thought process behind what they are doing. Me? I can get distracted by their ability to seemingly be ahead of me, or I can go at the pace which I intended, the path which is laid out for me and keep my eye on the right prize and keep pressing forward, one step at a time. Other “hares” exist… thoughts of negativity that want to pull me down and tell me to quit. But those hares can be drowned out with every step as I push forward, knowing I am beating those thoughts out of my brain. The list goes on. I think you get the point.

The point is…

Don’t let the hares in life stop you from your race destination, whatever that might be.  As I have well learned over the years, slow and steady does win the race. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Verbalize it however you wish. Whatever happens, don’t let the hares ruin your race. They are everywhere you look in life, but if you keep your eyes and mind on the goal ahead, you will be the winner in the end, just like the tortoise.

As I ran on Saturday, I was reminded of that story. As we are all in this race together, I want to encourage you to keep pushing forward, one step, one day at a time. Don’t let those “hares” distract you. Not in your training, your running, or in the race of everyday life. Slow and steady wins the race. Keep moving forward.  Standing still is the worst thing you can do.
Oh, by the way, that bunny that ran alongside me for a bit, racing against me … it disappeared. Typical of the hare, so I declared myself the winner by default 😉 ~Rachael