“No one can hit harder than life itself. It doesn’t matter how hard you can hit back. It’s about how much you can take and keep moving forward. How much you can suffer and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!”. -Sylvester Stallone.
Life hit me hard on August 30, 2023. My heart suddenly for no apparent reason went into Persistent a-fib. I knew it instantly. Been dealing with a-fib for 22 years. It happened just one day before a series of long distance canoe races in Kona Hawaii. My 6 and 12 man teams depended on me. I told no one. I suffered (feeling sick and miserable) during and after the races. No one suspected that anything was wrong.
One month later my 6 man canoe team won 1st in our age group in two races at the USA National Championships in Sacramento, California. Again none of my team mates noticed anything significantly wrong with me during the races. One team mate just said I seemed unusually quiet.
I thought a lot about the quote from Sylvester Stallone in training practices and in the races. I gotta take the hits and keep moving forward. Life will knock you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You’ve got to get up and keep moving forward. “That’s how winning is done!”
In 2 weeks (12–21-2023) my heart expert (Electro Physiologist) will do a catheter ablation inside my heart in an attempt to restore my heart to normal rhythm. I’m trying to remain positive and yet prepare myself for any possible outcome.
Good health!
Stay strong!