Unpredictability

I consider myself an avid planner. I prefer to know what is going on at what time, and similarly, what I should expect in both the near and distant future. Unpredictability scares me, as it does most people, and therefore I try to avoid the inconstant at all costs. (side note: if my mom happens to be reading this, please note that disorganization does not necessarily correlate with unpredictability, and this post by no means can be used as a case for me to clean my room.) For this reason, it was much to my dismay that almost immediately after the World Championship this summer I tore a tendon in my wrist, preventing me from climbing for the majority of bouldering season.

My unpredictable injury left me completely confused and devastated, with nowhere to put my now-useless 8 month plan on "How To Become the National Champion". I spent a large portion of my recovery trying desperately to salvage all the plans I had made pre-injury. It was only through these efforts that I truly discovered the danger in planning. Despite our efforts, some unpredictability is completely unavoidable, and by depending on variables that may or may not remain constant, we set ourselves up for inevitable disappointment. By accepting that unpredictability is the only true constant, I was finally able to heal emotionally and simultaneously heal physically from my season-ending injury.

My inability to climb gave me a chance to explore new facets of the sport that were never in my original plan. I had the opportunity to coach the younger up-and-coming kids, who made me remember why I began climbing in the first place. I had a chance to watch my best friends compete and crush both in the adult and youth circuits (S/O to Grace Mckeehan, Claire Buhrfeind, Megan Mascarenas, and Margo Hayes for killing it at both Adult National Championships this year). Finally, I had the honor of getting to know one of my personal climbing role-models: Alex Johnson. Alex proved to me that not all surprises are awful, when she presented my with a spot on the North Face Young Gun Rookie Team at the National Championship at which I could not compete.

Despite all that I have gained from sitting out for the last 6 months, I am ecstatic to finally throw my hat back into the ring and get back to doing what I love. To say that I don't have a goal would be prevarication, as most competitive athletes strive for the same thing. With that being said however,  I look forward to approaching the upcoming season with no expectations and facing unpredictability head-on. With an open mind and without a plan, I can't wait to compete this weekend at the first SCS competition of the season, and see what surprises (good and bad), the future holds.