Anything Could Happen

This past weekend, I got to attend my daughter’s high school swim meet against another school. I enjoy any time I spend with my family. During the first half of the swim meet, our school was in the lead by a few points. As the meet went on, the rival school surpassed us and took the lead, by a few points.

After the 100-yard breast stroke, which was the second last event, the score was 85-86, rival school ahead. It came down to the last event, the 400-yard freestyle relay. Our school’s first seed team was solidly leading all the way. My daughter’s team, the second seed team, was in the third position from the start. At some point during the third leg of the race, the rival team grabbed the third position, leading our team by a full body length. Then it was my daughter’s turn to swim as the anchor.

As I was watching and video recording, I felt this excitement within me. My heart was beating faster than usual. There was this sensation of warmth radiating from the middle of my chest. I did not even realize that I started to cheer loudly. “Go go go! You can do it Sydney!” Apparently I was yelling pretty loudly. Who knew that high school swim meets could be so exciting? Anything could happen.

Sydney’s arms were moving steadily. Her kick was keeping in form. She was gradually closing the gap between her and the swimmer in the third place. Then, they were head to head. Sydney kept propelling and snuck into the third place. As she swam the final 25 yards, she was a full body length ahead. Wow! What an ending! The final score: 95-90. We won!

As you think of a situation that anything can happen, you get to choose how you feel. You can be lighthearted and curious, and not be burdened with what the outcome should be. To me, this is like looking for seashells on a calm beach. It is as if you are going on a treasure hunt. You may not find any shells you want to keep. You may find some nice ones which you already have a full collection of. Or you may find something totally unexpected, just like what I found a couple years back – a dried seahorse with intact features. It is easier to feel excited when you are lighthearted.

The other option is to feel dreaded, or judge the outcome before it happens. When you are in a judging mode, things in general are likely more of a burden to you. You may have doubt about the situation, and may think of negative thoughts about it. This is just like the worry warrior I shared with you from the previous blog post.

The more we practice to feel lighthearted, joyful and excited in different circumstances, the more capacity we have to deal when we are faced with more serious situations, such as a cancer diagnosis or losing a loved one.

Unpredictability is part of the human experience. Let us fully embrace it and be really present. You have the power to decide how you feel.