"We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal and then leap in the dark to our success." - Henry David Thoreau

"We must walk consciously only part way toward our goal and then leap in the dark to our success."

It is true that "thinking" can only take you so far. Bold action! Daring! Bravado! Even foolishness itself is the necessary final ingredient for any true success. Because if you think something all the way through, you will inevitably realize the unlikelihood of success. The absolute utter folly of trying. The inertia of inaction will gain momentum and all of your dreams and aspirations will come to naught. I speak of experience. Being of relative sound mind (most of the time), I am only too familiar with a history of rational thought and smart, well-thought-out choices. And the results: a boring, safe, and ultimately unsatisfying life. And those rare times (seemingly rarer by the day) when I 'leapt' as Thoreau admonishes? On many occassions - abject failure! But on just enough - bliss! success! heroic accomplishments! memories worth cherishing and retelling! and always a sense of satisfaction for having tried. The most recent of these experiences being my Marathon in Hawaii. Completely unwise given a) I hadn't trained for over 3-months, b) I had injured both knees in the preceeding 3-months of training, c) the financial burdon of travelling there and covering the obligations of my mediocre fundraising efforts. But I was committed. Determined. Or at least unprepared to not go. In fact, it was only at the very last moment that I truly decided to proceed. I remember it was the night before the race and I was still not decided. Soberer voices begging me to reconsider lest I do more damage to my middle-aged body. I went to bed that night undecided. I woke up wide-awake without alarms or wake-up calls at 3:30am and was so certain that I didn't hesitate once before jumping into my running gear and headed down to the lobby to meet the rest of my so-called team. It's funny. I didn't make very good time at all. In fact, I probably would have completed sooner/faster if I had walked the whole way instead of ran the 1st half and walk-ran-hobbled the second. But I finished! I did it! I completed the race. And although I was in absolute agony for the rest of the trip and for days/weeks later, I am to-this-day proud of that frail accomplishment. I DID IT! So...the question now begs asking: TO WHAT OR WHERE SHALL I LEAP NEXT?