I spoke with my mother, Marilyn, a few weeks ago to get an update on her walking activities. You may remember that she has been dealing with Parkinson’s Disease now for over 10 years, and she had been gradually retreating from her typical, actve life when the 10,000 Kettlebells for Parkinsons challenge came along. She decided she could try to do some daily walking, starting out at about 100m/day (followed by a rest). That was January, 2016. She kept at it, and virtually walked from her home in Saskatchewan to Brandon, MB by mid-October. Distance: 150km! She didn’t stop there, but kept going and made it to somewhere near Austin, MB, for a total 2016 distance of over 200km.

The question then became, “Where should I walk now?” She decided to start 2017 by virtually walking west, and set off. On December 15, 2017, she “arrived” in Regina, after another 220km.

So what do you do after you’ve virtually marched east and then west?

You go to England and virtually walk there, of course. As of the other day, we found her approaching London, England from the south, headed for the Yorkshire Dales.

This inspires me for more than a few reasons. First, Mom’s sheer tenacity to keep at it has been impressive. Second, I see what a person can accomplish when they do what they are able to do. Third – what an example of toughing it out. I can jam out with one excuse. She has persevered with a whole wheelbarrow full of potential excuses. And she is probably the last person on the planet to actually use an excuse to try to get out of something…

If you doubt yourself, you might be at risk of doing nothing, fearing you may not “succeed” at some goal or objective. Maybe a better perspective would be to do something, and see what happens if you keep at it. No offense, Mom, but I don’t think any of us would have predicted that you would walk 200km in 2016. Especially not in early 2016. Of course, now that you’ve smashed that glass ceiling, who knows what you’ll accomplish!

So try stuff. Don’t be reckless with your health or safety, but take a few risks to “step-out” now and then. See how far it takes you!