Hey Everyone. Do me a favor and promise you won't tell Outside Magazine this, but around three years ago, someone gave Jer and a I a year's subscription to the mag as a gift. Somehow, we ended up getting a double-subscription, don't ask me how. Now, three years later, they've finally gotten around to reducing our subscription to just one per month, but we're still getting the magazine. I think somewhere in there we resubscribed during a deal they were doing, one year for $5, but otherwise, we're apparently permanent honorary members of their subscriber's club. Don't get me wrong, I'm quite happy about it. And you can't beat the subscription price, right? Basically, about 10 cents an issue. Not bad, huh?Anyway, that's not really what this post is about. It's actually about things that are inspiring and make a person realize that no matter how rough it may seem like things are, or how many obstacles you may have to achieving your dreams, there really is no obstacle more inhibiting than your own personal willingness to believe you can't do it. I know that, as an amateur author, I often come up with excuses for everything from why I don't have enough time to write, why I'm not writing as well as I want, laments about having access to the publishing industry or contacts that will help me launch my career, etc. etc. ad nauseum. But really folks, the only thing that's holding me back is me.Occasionally you read a story or meet a person that makes you realize that you can achieve your dreams no matter what obstacles you think are holding your back. A roadblock is just that, a block on a road. And roads are only one of a million ways to get to where you're headed.Okay, so you're probably asking what that has to do with Outside Magazine. Let me explain. Their November issue included a story about a man named Kevin Michael Connolly who's just over 20 years old, is a champion skier from Montana, and has traveled around the world on his own multiple times taking photographs. His work appears in a number of national galleries.So what, you may be asking. Traveling isn't a big deal and anyone can take pictures. But Kevin is extraordinary because he was born with no legs. He's done more in his short life with only half the mobility (and half the body) that most of us have. This is a guy who really knows what a roadblock is, and how to maneuver around them. On a skateboard.So, if you've got a dream or a goal that you want to achieve, I recommend thinking about what you perceive your roadblocks to be, and then thinking about Mr. Kevin Michael Connolly.[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/6934037 w=400&h=225]Double Take Trailer from Kevin Michael Connolly on Vimeo.
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All content copyright unless otherwise specified © 2008-2013 by Tammy Salyer, writer. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to use short quotes provided proper attribution is given.