The Quest: 2nd Hole

By Doug Swanson

In setting out on a journey we soon discover many imperfections in our notions of how the journey should evolve. At the outset, we were certain that the road to the crest of our dream would be somewhat pebbled, but never for a moment did we imagine the deep crevices, twists and turns in our lives and the inclement nature of the journey that we embarked upon. We never imagined that we would experience the deep void of darkness that obscures the dream. We never envisioned that the dream, which glowed so brightly, would be (some days) but a faint speck on the dark horizon. It is inevitable that the flare will reduce to a flicker and then "scream" back into life, many times. It's the price of having a dream (John Daly, among thousands of others, can attest to that.)

It is only when we experience the challenges that are thrown at our dreams that we begin to understand the true nature of the journey. It is essential that, as we pursue our dream, we constantly redefine its journey. We learn that we cannot know in advance how to do the journey. Dreaming is, in large part, managing the adjustments, rearranging the travel, partaking in the side-road activities (which we didn't expect), all the while redefining the dream.

The dream cannot be achieved in its initial premature form. The dream is an outcome that we have unfairly targeted as something that will bring us everlasting happiness. I doubt that there is any dream that can do that for us. We are certain that when we get our dream we will have permanent tranquility. What we must discover is that the effort, energy, and the pursuit of the dream is where our attention needs to be directed.

Tranquility is the pursuit, even when the efforts seem to be unproductive. We make some "educated" guesses about how we may enroll ourselves, but we also make many plans that do not aid our efforts. We learn that partaking in the adventure is really doing what is demanded of us (changing if need be) to continue. It is also about not letting the circumstances frighten us away from the dream. It is about resilience; it is about being unfazed and always hopeful, even in the darkest moments. It is about deciding to be powerful even when we feel weak. It is about being humble when we are stellar. It is about looking light-years ahead (way down the fairway), and at the same time it is about being only in the moment (on this shot).

The journey is complex and complicated. It is also about simplicity. It is doing the simple things that focus us and our efforts to move us one iota closer to our dream. Again, though, it is not managing the dream, it is all about managing the journey. It is coping with adversity and redefining the steps we take in pursuing our cherished dream. As we move along, we discover that all beginnings begin with some other beginning's end (this is a T.S. Eliot line, recently adopted by Semi-sonic in their song Closing Time). To begin a step in a new direction (beginning) means we must stop the feet from moving in the previous direction (ending). It is feeling deep in our bones that all learning begins with failure and "rejoicing" in the opportunity to resolve the loss and losing. If you do not experience some challenge, some new questions, some perplexity, then you already knew the whole experience and therefore learned nothing new.

It seems to me that it is all about learning from the fairway … letting the fairway teach me the game. To experience challenge, to experience new questions, to be perplexed are states that heighten our awareness and sensitize us to seeking learning and answers. Without experiencing these states we are not motivated to grow, learn, and develop. My friend says that simplicity is on the far side of complexity, not the near side. We can only know something after we have struggled with NOT knowing it. It is complex, complicated, almost unintelligible until we know it; then, and only then, can it be simple. To want simplicity to be first, without the struggle, is wishful thinking. I cannot know until I have struggled with not knowing.

The struggling is the journey; the readjustment that moves us to a new place in the direction of our hopes, dreams, aspirations. Be willing to change; allow the fairway to be your teacher, for it contains all the challenge you will ever need.

The Brent Morrison Golf Academy is located at Pheasant Glen Golf Resort, 1025 Qualicum Road, Qualicum Beach, B.C. V9K 1M5. (250) 752-8786. For more information on instruction programs for adults and juniors, contact the Academy office.

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