I have one question on my mind these days: how do I proceed forward? It was about a year ago now that I accepted the possibility that change could be a good thing and that coming back to Canada and working with a local coach here in Toronto would be what I needed to take that last step into major international competitions. However, here I am standing at the end of a disappointing and frustrating 7 months at UofT and preparing to make a coach and training location switch. Second thoughts creep in, and say that I should not have listened to various people who talked me into leaving my training location in the Netherlands. Unfortunately, that is just the trouble with hindsight 20/20; it feels so easy to say should have, could have, would have ...
When there is a clear ending, there are two questions that come to mind: do you regret the choice? Would you do it over again? To the first question, the answer is yes. However, to the latter, it is complicated to know for sure what I would or should do. I had a great deal of information to make the choice, but it was not enough. If I knew then what I know now of how the situation really is and not what it is made to look like, I know the answer would be no, and so I am starting over. As I prepare to move forward, I take a moment to think only of the positives.
Throughout the year I various conversations with my old coach, Bart, about my struggles, and fears and he would remind me that the person who knows Susan Coltman the best is me; I know what I can do and what I need to be able to perform, so it was time to take control for myself. I also had the great support of my friend Aquil Abdullah, and he too would remind me of my inner strength and that I needed to able to stand up for myself and know what I needed.
A noted American Author once said, "There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning." This moment marks my new beginning. Wish me luck!
Your Athlete,
Susan
Hi Susan,
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about your struggles. Perhaps your struggles were just part of the adjustment? Either way, I hope you caan come back stronger than before. Your posts can be very inspiring. Any idea where you're going to end up this year?
Hi Susan,
ReplyDeleteMy son and I are very sorry to hear about your back injuries. We met you during a UofT Junior Blues session for kids and you told us about your hope of competing at this year's Commonwealth Games. You're an amazing athlete--hopefully a change in coach & a re-affirmation to trust your instincts will be what you need.
Hi Susan,
ReplyDeleteI recently came up with your blog, sorry to hear about your bad times and hoping that nowadays it is being much better. I really enjoyed going through some of your posts and your encouraging and inspiring writing. I know it is been a while without writing but I was wondering if you would be interested in sharing your posts on Glipho? I bet that our users would be very interested in your stuff! It's a quite new social publishing platform, where you can connect to every social network accounts, really easy to use it and communicate with your followers and a good way to get exposure! In additional, you are able to import the posts from your blog in a super-easy way without affecting it at all.
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All the best,
Maite