Living the motto 100 per cent is Possible

Yesterday was an especially good day, not least because I managed to do so many things that seemed impossible to squeeze in. It was a good day because I turned several “I can’ts” welling up in me, to “Let’s go for it!” It was a satisfying day because I had lived out some values I would like to see more of in me.

And I once again enjoyed the experience that when the mind is willing, it becomes creative and adapts the body, situations, others around me to have me achieve the results I want.

I had planned to go to church early in the morning, have lunch with Uncle Mike, Aunty Dorothy and my son, and then do a three-hour 16km trek in MacRitchie before heading out for dinner.

As James was going for his son’s commencement ceremony of a leadership training programme, he had to finish the trek no later than 5pm, meaning we had to start at 2pm. I also wanted to be there to encourage Chris, my team member.

But… and many more ‘buts’ came to play in my mind. Two o’clock is too early.  I can’t rush through a lunch and change and dash to Venus Drive in time. It is so inconvenient. The girly part of me balked at details like: how and where to bathe and change in time, before and after the hike. So, at first, I thought to forgo the hike. Then I thought, forget about going to the leadership event.

I had attended this very same leadership programme from AsiaWorks 13 years before and recalled the many ‘impossible’ tasks I had gone through. I had learnt to do more, be more, dare more, and accommodate crazy demands on my time.

I learnt having all these activities in one day is 100 per cent possible. It can be as simple as whether I want to do them or not and then figuring out how. But, first comes the decision to go for it. I told myself: stop putting things like bathing and looking good above values like loyalty, going full-steam at 100 per cent effort and teamwork. It is about stretching my heart, soul and capacity, not just about time management!

So, I went to the earliest service in church. I packed all the hiking stuff the night before.  Lunch was brought forward half-an-hour. At lunch, I completely focused on being with the people there, replacing quantity with quality of time. Hence, I got to enjoy sumptuous food and convivial company. Right after lunch, I dashed to the hotel’s toilet to change into hiking gear.

James, the ever-supportive buddy, drove up to the hotel driveway (teamwork!) and I hopped on, still wearing only my socks. At exactly 2pm, we plunged into the forest; and yes, we had a fabulous hike! The weather was perfect – cool, breezy with occasional bursts of sunshine. (The forecast had predicted showers and thunder in the afternoon, which was another negative consideration we chose to ignore.) We emerged at exactly 5pm!

That left us with one hour to get back, shower, jump into clean clothes and get to the AsiaWorks office by 6pm!  It was done with ease, grace and agility. No one would have guessed that just an hour before I was hot, sweaty, and dirty.

I went to sleep feeling very happy and deeply contented with having accomplished what had seemed impossible. Once again, I had snuffed the whines coming up from within, built my ‘I can’ muscles, practiced values which I think would help me live a more meaningful life.

I felt GOOD to live life at a 100 per cent and be a ‘possibilitarian’