Journal #8- Rational Approach

An emotional experience often times results in rash decisions that are made without thinking.  It takes a lot of drive and wisdom to make rational choices in a situation like this.  A time in my life that has involved this rational decision making was when I did not finish well in a track meet.  I was not happy with the way I ran or the time I finished in at the sectional meet.  I was seeded first because the two kids ahead of me dropped out.  A half hour previously I had run the 4x800 and qualified for state in that event.  I was tired and nervous by the time the 800 came around.  I took the race out too slow and ended up in fourth place with a 2:04.  I was severely disappointed in my time.  I let my emotions get the better of me for a while, but I decided to make the conscious decision to not give up.  I still had one more race at the state meet, and I would work my hardest to do well in that race.  I was fueled by the anger I felt at losing the race and the determination of running well for the rest of my team and myself.  It ended up being a blessing of not running at state because it was a very hot day and I got to just enjoy the experience of being there instead of stressing out over a race. Chosing the rational way to deal with my situation resulted in a better end to my season, than what would have occurred if I continued to pout.  By overcoming my emotions of anger and disappointment, I was able to enjoy the rest of the season and have a positive attitude about the years of running still to come.  Chosing the rational choice often is harder, but in the end produces better results.