How Challenges Build Us

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. While I can talk about it now, I was speechless in the picture above when we took it.

Not speechless because of the views, even though they were beautiful, but speechless because I was GASSED. Zipped. Worn out. DONE.

If you know me, you know the only things I do outdoors usually involve golf clubs or swimming pools. I don't fish. I don't hunt. I damn sure don't hike.

But this Christmas break my family had the opportunity to go visit my dad out in Fort Collins, Colorado. A "nice walk around Horse Tooth Reservoir" would be an activity that could get us out of the house to burn off a few of those Christmas calories we found.

This "walk in the park" would unknowingly become a full blown hike within a matter of minutes.

Dressed totally inappropriate for hiking, we started up the trail...more like a road. Yeah, it's a little uphill but being out of shape and in some altitude I was a little warm just five minutes in.

And then the snow began.

And then the "road" turned into "FOOT TRAFFIC ONLY BEYOND THIS POINT." Oh heck yeah! This will be fun! Let's go to the top of Horse Tooth Mountain! We ALL thought this would be awesome.

I think there were 4 times over the next hour where I told the kids (two of who were crying to turn around), "we're almost there." I doubled over gasping for air and trying to shake dizziness a good 5 to 6 times.

It was at the true halfway mark that I caught a brief second wind. I realized I was in a Bucket List moment.

Here I am with my family and supposed to be enjoying quality time. "Snap to it dad" I thought to myself. You're here to conquer and Ultimate Challenge (the U in the MY BUCKET LIST Life Plan.) "Get to the top of this thing. Make yourself and your kids proud."

So I rallied up my two sons and gave a pep talk that would've made Knute Rockne shake. "This is where champions are made boys. Nobody wants to do hard things anymore. You want a great reward? You'll feel it when we hit the top! It's the 4th quarter. We're getting our butts kicked, but we're about to win this game if we keep going!"

They started chanting back with me. "Let's go dad. We're almost there!"

It was getting colder, the snow was falling harder, and the only people we were seeing were on their way down. "You're almost there," they kept telling us. "Be careful, it's getting really slick."

We trudged on. Feeling like we might die (only because we don't do this hiking thing) but knowing we were truly living for the moment.

85 minutes and 2000ft later, we made it as far as we could safely go. Not quite to the pinnacle, but we made it to the viewing point and it was the top for us. Mission accomplished. Challenge completed.

We are meant to do hard things. Too often we don't because of the head-trash we allow to consume us. That head-trash builds mountains in our minds. But faith and action can move any mountain we face.

What Ultimate Challenge have you faced lately?

When you look back on it, how does it make you feel?

Take a few moments today and reflect back on that feeling. Write those feelings down if you will, then think and write about why it was a challenge to you.

That feeling you get is gratifying, isn't it? That's a feeling I want you to have more of. It's kind of weird at first, but soon you will realize that feeling is not selfish, it is strategic. That feeling will push you to want to do more, and if you will write it down, you will do more.

I will talk about that "walk around Horse Tooth Reservoir" for the rest of my life. What is even better is that my family will too. That's what Bucket List Living is all about.