I’ve been grappling with Newton’s First Law of Motion lately—specifically, the part about Inertia. I can’t quite generate the energy necessary to move the huge boulder which is me and what I want to do with the rest of my life, so I tend to end up remaining at rest. Suzy calls it a “very long” nap.
As we mature, our bodies develop a profound, almost spiritual devotion to Newton’s mandates. In our youth, we were all kinetic energy and bad ideas. We were objects in constant, chaotic motion that only stopped when we hit a wall or an unexpectedly steep curb. But now? We have transitioned into a state of pure potential energy, which is physics-speak for “I could do something great, and I’ll start tomorrow.” We still obey the law; we just lack the escape velocity to leave the sofa. I used to enjoy physics, and I’ll admit inertia was always a favorite of mine. I spent my youth plotting how to “overcome” Newton’s law. I never succeeded, of course, but I gave it a damn good try.
So this morning, I find myself back at the chalkboard. How do we generate the energy to move the stone? Perhaps, for those of us who are past halfway on the life cycle (or for anybody who needs to generate more energy) the catalyst is passion. No, I’m not talking about the kind found in romance novels; I’m talking about that one thing that still makes you stand up and shout until your lungs burn. It’s different for each of us, but we all have it. It’s what made Van Gogh paint, Michelangelo sculpt, or Caruso sing.
When you find inertia standing like a 300 lb linebacker at your front door, don’t turn around. You don’t need to move the whole mountain at once; you just need to trigger the first collision. Be like that particle inside a linear accelerator—starting with a single, microscopic nudge, but gathering speed and heat until the friction of the world can no longer hold you. Once an object like you gets in motion, Newton himself couldn’t stop you even if he tried. You aren’t just a boulder anymore; you’re the landslide.
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