A Mind Shaped by the Cold

I was obsessed with scoring points when I played basketball for the Irish team. I always wanted to score the most. I always wanted to win. This got me far: I was the first Irish person to score the most points at an international competition.

But, it left me with a problem.

My mind had been trained over many, many years to always want more: to be faster, to jump higher, to be stronger. What was the next move? How could I continue to win?

Eventually, I realised that this way of thinking was only useful in certain situations. Life is not always a competition.

What I found, when I got into the extreme cold (like an ice bath, a frozen lake, or the winter sea) was that my mind suddenly stopped running. Instead it surrendered to the mighty power of the cold (and of nature). I couldn't compete with this merciless teacher. I had met my superior. I had to let go. I had to feel the intensity of the moment.

I couldn't think about anything else in the cold - only survival.

This was liberating. I felt free from all my other thoughts.

When I got out of the ice, this feeling stayed with me. It allowed me to watch life unfold before me (instead of trying to bend it to my will). I finally understood what Bruce Lee meant when he said: "We must flow like water."

What happened when I let go of striving, pushing and competing?

The strangest thing: I felt open, more loving and happier.

Even stranger: the more I let go, the more successful I became.

Of course, there are still times when my mind races off into the future. But now, I know how to use my breathing to bring it back.

That's how I score points now.

The cold taught me that.