"Abraham Maslow (1943) stated that people are motivated to achieve certain needs.
When one need is fulfilled a person seeks to fulfill the next one, and
so on." Link
Maybe Maslow was wrong. If you're so inclined, hear me out on this one.
At this point in my life, at the tail-end of middle age (almost halfway to a century), I am acutely aware that I am fortunate. No. That's not right. I am acutely aware that I am blessed. I am blessed to be able to satisfy the first four psychological needs that Maslow identified. My biological and physiological needs, for air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sleep are pretty much a given. A nice house in a nice neighborhood give me protection from the elements, security, order, law, stability, freedom from fear.
I enjoy love and belongingness in the form of friendship, intimacy, affection and
love. My career provides some of the esteem needs such as achievement, mastery, independence, status, dominance, prestige, self-respect, respect from others. So according to the theory, I should be working on Self-Actualization - realizing personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking personal growth and peak experiences.
But this past weekend, I find myself once again returning to this sport and once again randonneurring takes me back to the basic needs. It is a place where breath (air), food, drink, shelter, warmth and sleep are no longer a given. Where I face the elements, vulnerability, and, yes, even fear.
I do keep the sense of love and belongingness. These are tools that I carry that as surely as I carry the things I need to survive.
Maybe I jumped into the deep end of this discussion too soon. There's a back story. Forgive me. You weren't there. Let me fill you in on that before we come back to this.
