Forever in Pursuit …

Yesterday I watched an old film that I’m sure many of you have seen – Chariots of Fire - I loved that movie. For those who haven’t seen it – it focuses on the internal battles that a group of athletes must contend with in preparing for the Olympic games – and is set in the early part of last century. I’m confident in saying that anyone who runs seriously, would have to hold this movie close to their hearts.
The thing I liked most about the movie was the way it depicted the various athletes. They were all very, very different in the way they approached their competition. One was driven by an inner faith, an almost divine sense of purpose; another looked at the whole thing as a joyful experience, and win, lose or draw he ran with a huge open mouthed smile; and yet another, was driven by a burning need to win; his approach was a restless, heart-rendering affair that had little room for either joy, or faith.
I loved that about the film. The fact that each of these characters we’re all driven by very different motivators – and so it is with each of us. We are all driven to live our lives and embrace our training in different ways. For some of us, it is a deep, quiet, perhaps even a spiritual need – for others it is a form of pure joyous release – and for others again, it is a serious need to dominate, to chase after – to partake in the exercise of endless pursuit … the reasons that drive each us may well be different – but we are bonded in that we all share the ‘mat’ experience …

JBW