good, better or best

As I ran the sled dogs along the Inlet this morning, I watched Carson, pulling as if her life depended on it, sprinting so fast that poor Inca -- my kind, gentle-spirited co-leader -- could barely keep up. Behind him, Otter ran right on his heels, pushing him even harder, making him run faster than he felt comfortable going.

I felt bad for him and kept slowing the team to keep him happy and performing within his abilities. The dogs were raring to go, so it wasn't an easy chore. They ran excitedly after having several days off.

It's strange how one thought will lead to another and another -- in what might seem like a random pattern but in the end really makes some sense. Because I watched Inca, who really is the most well-rounded dog on my team -- gentle, strong, lovable and smart -- and compared him to Carson, who can be bitchy, nippy but runs like the wind. She's the best at what she does, whereas Inca is an all-around great guy who just can't quite make the speed.

So watching Carson made me think of my conversation with Willie Hensley last week. I met with Hensley, a respected Native elder, business leader, social activist and now book author for a freelance story I'm doing, and as we talked, he admitted that he has never been a "specialist" in any one thing, opting rather to explore the interest of the moment and see where it takes him. (He also happens to be one of those people who is successful at just about anything, too, so it helps).

When he said that, I could relate. I sometimes think I am lacking, this inability to focus intently on ONE thing year in year out. Look at Lance Armstrong (my personal crush, but that's another story...). Cycling is what he does. What he knows. How he operates. Because he puts 110 percent of his being into that activity, he has become the best. (and best-looking, but again, that's another story...)

Me, I can't seem to operate like that. Instead of becoming obsessed with one thing, I find myself bouncing from one to the next to the next, trying it all out, but never really deciding "This is it." I love backpacking, hiking, running, cycling, dog mushing -- you name it. And while I've won a race or two and have improved vastly at most sports I've tried, I can't say that I've ever really dedicated my whole life to that "one" thing.

So, my thought is: Is this normal? Should I have a "true passion" for one thing? To be a successful writer, athlete, mom, etc. do I need to give it 110 percent? Or can I split those percentages into fractions and sample a little bit of everything?

I guess the easy answer is that "To be the best, you have to focus 110 percent." That's how Lance has done it, after all. That part is easy enough to get. But again, Lance is the VERY best.

I mean for we mere mortals: Is having, say, three athletic passions mean it will somehow lessen our ability to perform at our peak? I know, in my heart, that I've never reached my potential in any sport I've tried merely because I have not WANTED to. Instead of riding, riding, riding everyday, I sometimes want to go for a run. Instead of pushing, pushing, pushing myself on every ride, I sometimes just want to pedal around and see the sights.

Part of me knows this is OK. But there's another part of me that says that is a copout and that I should work harder, train longer, ride harder.

Same goes with writing, and here again, is why I'm thinking of Willie Hensley as I run the dogs along the Inlet today, watching a thin, welcome layer of clouds scud across the skyline.

Is it OK that I write the freelance stories, take on varying topics, meet different deadlines, just for the sake of writing? Or should I focus, focus, focus my brain and get the real story written? It's there -- I tell myself if I just get started it will come. But at the same time, will it just be drivel? (I'm saving that for this blog, see?!) I think I'm too scared to try.

I can rationalize. I can say I have to make a living. I have to have something to do (Ask my parents, my husband, my kids, my friends: I've never been good at "sitting around.") But I guess there's a tiny part of me that hopes these story assignments will spark some flame that will get the writing ball rolling.

Or will it just be another "thing" that I add to my to-do list because I can't be content with what simply "is."

No offense to Kenny Rogers, but I'm no real fan of his. Call me ambivalent. But I THINK this quote is attributed to him, and for that I've always liked his way of thinking. (And by the way, if you know WHO is the real author of this quote, LET ME KNOW!) But he said he'd rather be good at a lot of things than great at one.

And that quote has stuck with me. It appears to be the mantra by which Willie Hensley has lived, too, and that's a good reason to be hopeful for good things, too -- Hensley's a cool guy. Maybe I just need to accept what is, and follow suit. I have a good role model, after all.