Risking

Destiny is a concept coined and embraced by the mediocre. Greatness is not reached as a dash on a timeline but achieved through personal struggle and the great art of risk taking. Risk is an essential component in progress. At a point in the existence of every great thinker, innovator, creator, or just plain successful person there was that frightening walk down a plank with nothing but a boat of angry pirates to turn back to and a head full of hopes about the depths into which they are about to plunge. It is a courageous act to step away from the comfortable, from the safe and make an economic, social or emotional gamble when the odds of failure often outweigh the chance for success.

A risk is a daring adventure that can produce great rewards. A part of the true value of the risk, however, lies not in it's rewards but simply in it's taking. Risking is a pure act of humanity and is the ultimate step of commitment towards a goal. With that initial risk taken, with no escape from the consequences of that risk, positive or negative, the spirit is in a state of fulfillment. It no longer drifts about the realm of the safe and mundane, but takes flight in the skies of unrestraint. The sense of freedom that one experiences when no longer earth bound by their doubts and precautions renders connects them to their spirit in a manner that no other feeling can produce.

The art of risk taking is calculated and refined, but through it’s process of weighing and considering the odds, is whimsical and beautiful. Men and women take risks on the things they feel most passionate about, when their desire overpowers their fear of failure. The true risk taker is not the over privileged teen deciding to steal his parents car. No, the men and women who stake something dear to them, something that could damage their lives if lost, in order to reach a goal that is desperately desired or necessary, with the purest of intentions are the embodiment of the phrase risk taker. Risk taking does not ascend to a person at birth, but comes about through years of confidence building and extreme desire. The intentions of a person who is willing to risk in order to fulfill these intentions rank among the most noble on earth. A goal that leaves a man or woman willing to risk everything is truly life, or even society altering when reached.

What were once risks have now become some of the greatest attributes in my life. As a fourteen year old I struck out to Reno, Nevada on a Greyhound bus to enroll in an intensive wrestling camp. The schedule of the camp frightened me more then the lonesome, intimidating bus ride, requiring rigorous workout routines of video game softened adolescents. From that two week stay amidst some of the strangest mid-westerners imaginable I gained invaluable experience in the ways of coping with those who would not budge from their conservative opinions, as well as a greater appreciation for my own, more accepting background. The camp also heightened my abilities in wrestling, a sport that instills in me great joy, and that I will take great risks to excel in. Risks that I have taken to turn away from harmful activities that I once partook in have made me a stronger, and more focused person. With the most trying period of my life looming just months away, I realize that risks will again become necessary. These risks will be taken with full confidence, because I cannot rest while my spirit wanders the forest of indecisive safety.

The Greek roots of the word risk embody its meaning. In Greek the word means cliff, and that is precisely what a risk is according to novelist Ray Bradbury, who states "Living at risk is jumping off the cliff and building your wings on the way down." Often when a risk is taken, the outcome isn’t clear and failure is impending. This uncertainty ultimately fades and a better understanding of oneself and a feeling of confidence and fulfillment is reached. While everyone may not be able to make that leap, the few that do enjoy fulfillment regardless, for one is far better off at the bottom of the mountain, preparing to scale it in order to attempt a second leap then still at the top peering over the edge. Failure is often preferable to an unscathed wondering about what could have happened without the fear to risk.