Sacrifice

It was early. My eyes blinked with the pain of inadequate sleep. I looked at the numbers on the clock—did that say 5:00? I rolled my young eyes. The sky was dark and quiet, and I was quite sure this was going to be a waste of time. I got dressed, annoyed that I was up at this ridiculous hour and irritated at my dad for choosing this scenic float down the Snake River instead of a totally awesome whitewater adventure. This was going to be BORING.

UGH.

We drove to the river and stepped outside. It was freezing.

FRIGID.

Jackson Hole, even in the summer, was so cold in the mornings. My jacket was woefully insufficient, but it was all I had. I was grateful to put on the lifejacket they handed out—maybe it could act as another layer of warmth? I was skeptical.

Once again my frustration rose. I stood on the bank of the river, waiting with my dad and sister to get on the raft. What were we doing? This was so dumb! I was cold, tired, and confident that this little “adventure” was going to be the dumbest part of my day. My bad attitude and I got on the raft. It was go time.

We saw a bird here, and maybe a deer there—but besides being beautiful and peaceful, the scenic float was about as exciting as you’d imagine. All of a sudden, a magnificent elk broke through the shrubs on the side of the Snake River, and crossed the river in front of us. A few more elk followed. Then the entire herd crossed the river! I watched them, awestruck. It was one of the coolest experiences of my life. As the last of the herd made it to the other side, we heard a cry. The cry came again. Our guide explained that an elk calf was still on the opposite side, too scared to cross the river. Our raft kept floating along the river, and soon we had passed the herd. We all turned around and watched the elk cross the river (for the second time!) to get the baby.

AMAZING!

We were able to see that whole herd of elk up close and personal because of a little luck and sacrifice.

Sacrifice.

We sacrificed our sleep in a warm, cozy bed so we could be best positioned to see wildlife that morning. We sacrificed some comfort by floating outside in the cold on a rubber raft for the same reason. We had an incredible adventure because we were willing to give up some things for something better.

Sometimes, I think we have forgotten the importance of sacrifice. You cannot have it all, or do it all. It is impossible. You cannot be in peak physical condition without working your muscles regularly. You cannot accomplish your academic goals if you’re not willing to dedicate the time needed to study. You cannot simply really, really want something and expect that to be enough.

Don’t we all need to practice sacrifice? In order to get what you want, you must give up the things that get in the way of that goal. This is not an easy thing to do. In today’s world, you could look up a video on youtube and surely find elk crossing a river. I bet AI could create a nearly identical experience to the one I had so long ago, and you could watch it from your bed. Sigh.

It is NOT the same.

Real life—the one involving actual people with real emotions—requires sacrifice.

No one can have it all.

So decide what it is you really want. What matters the most to you? What do you want to do? Who are you trying to become? What is the end goal? Once you have answered those questions, your path forward becomes clear. Sacrifice becomes a part of your life. You start small—giving up one thing because you want something else more. Keep doing that. Keep practicing, and it will get easier.

The best things in life are always on the other side of sacrifice.