The Follow Through

I used to be ok with loose ends. I could leave a trail behind me of things half complete and not really notice the effects of it.

But as I’ve gotten older, it’s changed. Maybe it’s a side-affect of being a Mama. I have less time to putter, less energy to waste, and more input from the two little beings in my life.  I no longer like to live with anything lingering.  It’s a weight on my shoulder.  It’s unfinished business, and the file is still open until I close it.

This blog is a sequel to my recent post The Courage to Start. Because starting is wonderful. And so is finishing.

I’m sure I didn’t bring the saying ‘Get ‘er Done’ to Australia, but that’s what country folk in Canada say… ha! And it often comes to mind when I’m needing to complete something!

Finishing is an energetic shift. It’s a dot at the end of the sentence. It’s closing the door, and giving you the freedom to move on to the next thing. When we put out an intention to do something, it is a ‘thing’. And putting the energy out to get something underway and then leaving it is, in a subtle way, draining. I think of it as energy leaking.

It’s hard because it takes that sustained energy to follow through. And often after the initial starting energy wears off, we are grasping for momentum… or we bump into a hurtle and let our fears take over and give up!

Of course in some circumstances we might not finish for a very obvious reason, health or safety for example (see below). But the rest of the time projects need closure or a dream needs to be achieved!

Last year I did my first ever adventure race. It was such a different thing for me, I trained for months!  It was an ocean paddle + trail run + mountain bike. This was the first endeavour I did post kids on my own… so that added an extra level of excitement to it. I loved getting out of the house at daylight for training, just being in nature was soul food. (I had a training team, with two great friends who both ended up unable to do the race, for very REAL reasons, a very bad injury and a road closure due to flooding…)

But in the month before the actual race, I began to get a calf pain that was incredibly uncomfortable. It would start part way through my run and increase until I had to walk home.  So leading up to the event I backed off on training so I knew I could do the actual race. I was determined to finish!

The race day arrived and started off with the ocean kayaking, which was quite fun. And then part way through the run, as in my training, the calf pain started… and intensified. I had to walk parts that I wished I could have ran. I was watching as so many people passed me. But I thought phew, well at least after this I can just bike my way through the rest of the race! But I forgot about the part of the biking course that was so steep it was a mandatory dismount. This meant carrying the bike down very steep terrain. And let me tell you.. It took everything I had to get down that path carrying the bike. But I knew I had to follow through…the pain wasn’t going to kill me, I could do it. I kept imagining the end, and I kept putting one foot in front of the other.

And I’m so glad I did! Because the joy and the feeling of closure was so satisfying. Being able to push through the discomfort was worth it!  Even though it hurt like hell I ran the last bit with my little boy Lachlan in my arms!

I believe our thoughts and intentions create an energetic frequency. When they say ‘put it out there’… we are!  That intention is out there and the world is waiting for you to show up and start, but also to finish strong.

It takes focus and determination to get to the 3/4 mark, or an obstacle and keep on going.  You have to look for that inner fire, that drive that got you started in the first place.

What does finishing look like and how does it feel? Keep that vision and feeling upmost in your mind. Keep putting it out there and keep taking ACTION.

That thread you started is still there until you get to the end. Finish knowing you can close that door and open new ones.

And most of all… Get ‘er Done!

XO

Terra