As I wrote previously, I’ve been an avid mountain biker since I discovered the pastime as a teenager. Back then riding was largely a social affair. There was competition, but there was also cooperation.
We were not all at the same level and yet we could work together. We could help each other and hold each other up. We could advise each other on how to improve and encourage each other when things were not going our way.
As a young person, this communal review and communal support helped us to become better. This did not just happen through what we told each other. It also happened because we were looking outwards and striving to reach common goals.
Life Lessons
Fast-forward to married life, with young children, and I was often riding alone. I could take only the small opportunities that life at that time presented to get out on the bike.
It was nothing like the old group rides of former times, full of laughter and friendly competition. But then it happened. Smartphones began to offer cycling apps that allowed riders to compete and compare times, speeds and distances on any given trail.
I could now compare my performance with previous rides, and those of other riders. The extra thrill this produced was unexpected. This performance recording and review process created a lot of new energy. It helped me lift my game, get fitter, and network with friends.
This highlights for me the importance of community, even in sport. The process of helping, of reaching out to another person, not only helped the other person. It also helped us help ourselves.
We all need help. We do not have all the answers. None of us do.
At some point, we all need to review our lives and reconsider where we are going.
Sometimes we must change. We must change because the world changes. But to change intelligently, we must first be still. We must be still so we can reflect.
Room for Improvement
One thing I learned from sport, is that no matter how good you are, you can always be better. You can always be more refined. You can always be more precise. You can always do more and be more. This is a good thing.
We don’t need to do what we’ve always done to achieve what we wish to achieve. Sometimes we must change. We must change because the world changes. But to change intelligently, we must first be still. We must be still so we can reflect.
We don’t want to hang on to the things of the past if they cause our harm. But nor do we want to abandon them just because someone tells us to.
As I’ve aged and married and had kids and moved across the country, I can’t do the things I once did. I can’t just go mountain biking like I was a teenager. But this doesn’t mean I have to give it up. It just means I must think about how to do it.
We all need to do this, to stop and reflect on who we are, on what we are doing, and why we are doing it. That way, we can do what we need to do and do it better.
We’ve applied this principle to supporting the Thomas More Centre as it relaunches in Brisbane and elsewhere, and to its youth program, YPAT.
Luke McCormack is national president of the National Civic Council.
