Mountain Driving
Last year, I was watching a Toastmasters International Speech Contest. One of the contestants gave a speech about how her dad taught her to drive in the mountains. The title of her speech was, of course, “Mountain Driving,” and the message was that life is like driving through the mountains (ie. up and down, side to side and so on), but keep your foot on the pedal, keep going forward, and don’t let fear drive you.
I grew up in small town, Spruce Grove, Alberta, which was only a three-and-a-half-hour drive from Jasper National Park. My parents and I spent a lot of vacation time in the Rocky Mountains, and I have many fond memories of those trips.
This contestant’s speech reminded me of the road up to Mount Edith Cavell, located just south of Jasper. To reach the parking lot at the top, adventurers must drive up a very narrow 14-kilometer paved road with no guardrail and very tight switchback turns. The road is for cars only (no campers or trailers) and there is only enough room for two cars, one going in each direction. This road is not for the faint of heart.
As you gradually ascend, you drive straight for a bit, then take a sharp switchback turn, drive straight again, take another switchback turn, and so on and so on and so on until you reach the top. Once you are on that road, you are committed to reaching the top. There is nowhere to stop and nowhere to turn around should you change your mind.
Isn’t life a lot like that road?
Like the road at Mount Edith Cavell, life is not for the faint of heart.
To reach the top (eg. perhaps a goal you have set), the road is seldom straight. When was the last time you discovered that in your life? You may find yourself gradually ascending (all is well) when, all of sudden, it’s a sharp turn (expected or unexpected) to the right or the left. Once around the turn you get to drive straight again for a while, but then, there’s yet another sharp turn. And the sharp turns keep coming. Sometimes it’s an act of bravery to make the turn, but you keep your foot on the pedal and keep driving forward. That is the only way to get to the top. There is no place to stop and there is no room for turning around, backing up, or going down. You are committed to moving forward.
As you are on your road, have there been times when you felt like it was an act of bravery? There very well may be times when you’d like to stop, back up or go back down, but it’s a narrow road and there’s only one direction to go in and that is forward. So, keep your foot on the pedal, move ahead and enjoy the mountain drive.
What road are you on right now?
Are you ready to be brave?
Recommended Resources
- Article by Elise D. and Patrick Parker – “Switchbacks On the Rail and In Life” - https://roamingparkers.wordpress.com/2018/07/16/switchbacks-on-the-trail-and-in-life/
Monthly Challenge
- Take a piece of paper and draw a road on it, including 4 or 5 switchback turns. The plot a period of your life out on it. What do you see/remember? What did you learn?