A Room with a 'Crew'

I’m broken and beaten as I stumble through the woods. Every step feels like a tremendous effort. I catch a diffused glow shining meekly through the dense trees at the bottom of a hill. I run towards the light and reach a small shelter isolated off the path of the forest. After succumbing to my desperation for water and food, I nearly collapse to my knees.

A devoted group of individuals rushes to my aid. They feed me, help me change my clothes, and analyze my race plan before sending me on my way. I leave feeling renewed and that the impossible is now within my reach. Travelling far away from their friends and family, they have committed solely to me and accomplishing my dreams. They monitor my needs and run side-by-side as they pace me through the darkness that accompanies the night. They are my trail angels. They are the reasons I finish. They are my crew.

I was reflecting on my race experiences the other day while at work, and I contemplated the possibility of having a life crew. I don't mean good friends that you call up when you need to vent. I literally mean a crew. For example, say you've just got off the phone from an discouraging conversation and outside your office, you can hear people shouting your name, "Heather, you got this...Looking strong...You look great, almost there!"

Heading towards this enthusiastic crowd, you see friends gathered in the break room prepped to get you through the day. One has a coffee - hot but not too hot. One has more comfortable shoes for you to change into after a foot rub. One has had a look over your day and offers advice to ensure you're on track to finish everything before 5pm. You turn down the offer for Bodyglide and Squirrel Nut Butter.

Think of how motivated and refreshed you would be to address the perils of the work day having some one filling your mug with coffee whenever you run out and type alongside of you to keep you on target.

Knowing full well that this type of crewing is not entirely feasible, I'm still going to try to implement it. Smiles, words of encouragement, and comments on great effort, all help us attain our goals. If we can all "crew" for one another, we can become one another's pacers through a challenging race, a tedious work day or simply - the journey of life.

Happy Trails -