August 30, 2024
I've never really seen myself as a particularly brave person. Diving off a 3-meter board is already beyond my comfort zone. In a casino, I stick to the minimum bet at the roulette table. When it comes to everyday decisions, even something as simple as choosing a muesli at the store takes me longer than most, driven by a fear of making the wrong choice. My decision-making time increases exponentially with the price and significance of the purchase; buying a laptop, for instance, involves days of research beforehand.
When I share my plans for this journey with others, they often remark on how brave it is. This makes me question: Is it really courage? Am I perhaps braver than I thought? To be courageous requires an active choice. I feel such a strong inner urge to embark on this journey that it doesn’t seem like a conscious decision at all.
Yet, I have felt this drive for several years without embarking on the journey.
There have always been reasons. I didn’t want to go alone, then there was COVID, and wars along the planned route. Even now, there are plenty of reasons to hesitate. I still plan to tackle a significant portion of the journey solo. While COVID-related travel restrictions are a thing of the past, monkeypox recently emerged in the Uganda/Rwanda region. Additionally, I still face the risk of diseases with unpredictable consequences, such as malaria or sleeping sickness. The original route, known as "Cairo to Cape" (from Cairo to Cape Town), now presents more challenges than ever, with conflicts in Sudan, Eastern Congo, and unrest in the Middle East affecting Egypt, not to mention the disturbances in Ethiopia.
There are always reasons. Many people have dreams but never turn them into reality. "Soon" and "later" can quickly turn into "never". Procrastination is often the path of least resistance.
At some point, a decision must be made: To avoid the path of least resistance, to follow one’s heart, to listen to one’s inner voice, to pursue one’s dreams, and to truly live them.
I firmly believe that following one’s heart can never be a wrong decision. This conviction gives me confidence: no matter where this journey takes me, it will never be a misstep.
A strong inner drive and a loud inner voice are certainly helpful, but they don’t make the decision for you. Nothing and no one can take that responsibility away. So, I can finally allow myself, at least once in my life, to consider myself courageous.
