The Engine vs. The Caboose
If you need a bit of inspiration this week that reassures you about the remarkable things you can accomplish, no matter what your age or your past, I encourage you to read the Washington Post’s fantastic profile of 93-year-old, Richard Morgan
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There are many astonishing things about this man.? For example, he is a four-time world champion for indoor rowing.? In fact, he has rowed so much that he has travelled the equivalent of going around the globe 10 times.? He has 15% body fat, he has the record for his heartbeat climbing to the highest rate for someone in their 90s, and is considered by his physicians to have the heart of a 30- to 40-year-old.? We can all look at that and be astonished and inspired.? But what is truly remarkable is that he didn’t start exercising until he was 73. His grandson tells the story, when Morgan retired, he found a rowing machine and, “never looked back.”
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While we often look at challenges in our life and think what is stopping us from accomplishing great things are the obstacles in front of us, it is more often than not the baggage from the past that is weighing us down.? We spend so much time dwelling on our mistakes, our limitations, and our losses, that we can easily convince ourselves that true exceptionalism is beyond our reach.? To borrow a phrase from Dr. James Hollis, one of my favorite authors, we need to stop watching our lives from the caboose and get into the engine room.? When guilt spurs us to action it can be a dynamic force.? But when it immobilizes our lives by keeping us wedded to a limiting past, we take upon ourselves a smaller life than we are capable of embracing.? At 73, Morgan could have bemoaned the fact that he had failed to live the most healthy life possible.? Instead, he saw a rowing machine and got on it. That choice made all the difference.
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So many people had an incredible sense of ambition, optimism, and vision that characterized their youngers selves.? But somewhere along life’s way, the realities of life’s harshness beat them down one too many times.? It became easier to dream small and not make waves.? And while there is no doubt an element of self-preservation in that approach, I imagine that every now and then those individuals look back and remember the dreams they put on the shelf and experience a pang of regret, wondering if they aren’t missing some of life’s abundance.? That is where the beauty of stories like Richard Morgan’s can provide inspiration.? They remind us that the choices that really matter are the ones we are making right now.? We are capable of more than what came before.
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Despite our occupation as prosecutors frequently centering on the stories of people at their worst, I’ve found most prosecutors to be by and large a positive people.? After all, entering and staying in our profession almost requires you to have a belief that you can make a difference.? But it can be easy to lose sight of that vision.? A lack of resources, constant pressure to perform, critical media, and the revolving door of the criminal justice system, all conspire to rob us of the imagination and passion that brought us to our profession in the first place.? I’ve seen too many of my colleagues leave our profession burnt out, bitter, and disappointed.? And the truly sad thing is that it doesn’t have to be that way.
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One possible way to chart a different direction is to let go of the cynicism and doubt that limits vision and to allow yourself to dream again.? It is the decision to stop passively watching your life go by from the caboose, getting into the engine room and deciding where the train is going to go.? It is asking, when confronted with a choice, whether the option enlarges your life or causes you to be a smaller person.? Think about how transformative that could be in the life of a prosecutor.? You might spend less time allowing yourself to get dragged into petty squabbles with opposing counsel that don’t advance your case or career.? You might start looking at cases that you’ve historically sold short in a plea deal because you thought you couldn’t prevail and find yourself willing to take a shot at trial.? Maybe it would embolden you with the courage to ask your supervisor to assign you a more significant case than what you are currently prosecuting.? Maybe it gets you to learn a new skill, remember an old passion, or embrace an inspiring goal.
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But it all starts with a willingness to let go of what happened before this point and place the emphasis on the decisions you make moving forward.? There are many times in life that we get motivated by a dream, we don’t take action, and then we get discouraged because we look at where we are and we realize we haven’t moved.? But the decision of whether you keep regretting past choices or to take the first step forward today is the difference between living small or living life to its fullest.
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May this week find you turning the page on the last chapter and looking to write a new one.? May you find yourself inspired by Richard Morgan’s decision to transform his life at the age of 73, convinced he could experience something new and incredible.? May this week bring you abundant living at its best.? Have a good week my friends.
David A. Lord
Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney
City of Alexandria