Today I made a commitment for the coming year.  It has taken me some thinking and pondering, lots of research and reference checks and some soul searching and life style rearrangement to come to this decision.

I know it will be an uphill climb to defy gravity and go against the norm and the natural; there will be barriers, distractions, experimentations, tests, some mistakes made, lots of sleepless nights and maybe some disappointments. 

Yet isn't that what life is about?  I could stay exactly where I am and not risk any mistakes, disappointment, hard work or heart ache and I will not have grown.

Today I embarked on a new journey and I will fix my eyes on the goal I have set, while I move towards it one step at a time.  I know not how the journey will be neither do I know what to do to get to where I want to go, but I will know what the next step is for me.

I like the analogy that Eben Pagan uses.  He painted progression in life as a giant stair case, and that the next step is always lit although we cannot see ten steps ahead of us.

Being a detail oriented person, I like to plan all my steps in advance.  I like to know exactly what to do at the exact point in time and I like to know that I have made preparations for all possible scenarios with the what ifs and contingencies.

But life will only reveal itself to us one step at a time! And all my preparations will not be sufficient as I know not what lies ahead.  I take comfort that I see the next step.  And when I get to the next step I know I will see the next step.

It reminds me of the trip coming down from Mt Kinabalu last September.  I have never walked/tracked/climbed so much for so long at one go.  Ti was 5 hours up to base camp, stayed over night and we started journey again at 2am to reach the summit by 6am. Then all they way to the finishing which ended at 4pm for me.  As I was coming down from base camp, my knees were hurting badly from walking long hours up to the summit and down again.  And it had been pouring and I had fallen a few times on the wet and muddy road. I didn't know how I was going to make it back to the finishing gate.

I could not see much of what was ahead, visibility was not great and there seemed to be endless twists and turns and slopes.  There was only one way to go, and that was forward; no turning back and I had to do that before dark!

And the thought that was running through my head was "one step will lead me to the next, I will get to the finishing line".

It seemed to take forever and my legs were not co-operating with me then, yet I took one step at a time. I never quite knew where the next step might bring me to.  It could lead to yet another turn or many more steep steps that I had to painstakingly work through.

Was I glad to have the mountain guide beside me, talking to and keeping pace with me as we moved on, encouraging me to take the next step one at a time.

Perhaps that physical mountain climbing experience was the trial run that will help prepare me for my new journey to the top of my new mountain.  Well, my bags are packed, my shoes are on and I am ready to go, and the trail will lead me on one step at a time.

I can just imagine a trail of bright light lighting up leading the way for me as I scale my new mountain (Incidentally, I did see this as we started going up to the summit of Kinabalu at 2am; nothing but pitch blackness and a trail of head lights ahead of me leading up to the mountain.  We were going to reach the summit before 6am to watch the sun rise.  It was absolutely spectacular and breathtaking, vast and magical!)

And I will be sharing the joy of reaching the top with you.  In the mean time, check this site for experiences I share along the way …

If you are looking for a "Mountain Guide" to walk along side you, check this out.

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