Why Worry? - Dire Straits

I see this world has made you sad, some people can be bad, the things they do, the things they say…

Taken from the 1985 Multi-Platinum DDD (Digitally-Recorded, Digitally-Mixed and Digitally-Mastered) Brothers in Arms, this track is a great opportunity to take 8 minutes and 31 seconds out of your day to consider the simple question, ‘Why Worry?’ Or perhaps you can ask yourself more directly, ‘Why do I Worry?’

For some, even the word ‘Worry’ can be ‘Worrying’ enough to avoid the question without investigating the reasons why we waste so much of our time over something that is totally out of our control. I mean, throughout life, there are so many things that really do matter, there’s hardly time to waste on things that simply just don’t IMO.

I'll wipe away those bitter tears, I'll chase away those restless fears, and turn your blue skies into grey…

I’m sure the lyrics here should be more about turning ‘Grey’ skies into ‘Blue’ Mr Knopfler! - I meet a lot of people who live with very cloudy-grey outlooks on life, that after some deep soul-searching with my help, lead to a much bluer sky with prolonged sunnier periods and fewer scattered showers.

It’s getting to the root cause of ‘Worrying’ that’s interesting for me and as someone that genuinely doesn’t ‘Worry’, it got me thinking why the emotion has escaped me or is in fact ‘Worrying’ an emotion that I plainly ignore to admit to and something I believe I don’t suffer from.

I mean, what is there that I need to really get ‘Worried’ about? Even when I was really ill with GBS a couple of years’ ago, I can’t say that I was ‘Worried’. Was I scared? - Perhaps. But it’s hard to remember if I was or if I wasn’t and that’s where the waste of energy in ‘Worrying or being Anxious’ is highlighted for me.

Sure, I’m not without any form of trepidation or fear, I’m not made entirely of steel, but if I really think deeply about what’s driven my desire to compete and complete, you could say it’s ‘Fear of Failure’. And that’s my ‘Deep Driver’, it’s the thing that keeps me heading full-steam ahead, still wanting to achieve and maintain the world I’ve created that surrounds me.

It's done me proud too and I'm happy to admit when I need to change things and be prepared to do something about it, rather than soldier on.

For instance, I know folk that are in ‘love-less’ marriages where admitting to their failure and the cost of divorce both to their children’s well-being and also to their finances are keeping them in a constant state of flux and ‘Worry’, rather than battling the ‘Elephant in their room' that will create a much happier, more care-free world for all concerned. The action is less painful than the 'Years of Worry' hoping for a solution that is in fact always there.

There should be laughter after pain, there should be sunshine after rain, these things have always been the same…

Because there is always a solution, there’s always a future. And there’s no need to ‘Worry’ if you are prepared for change and open for things not going to plan and willing  to adjusting plan to accommodate life’s ups and downs as they happen.

Things nearly always turn out for the best I’ve found or even better than you thought they might. I’m someone that believes it’s better to regret having done something, than regret not having done it at all. Okay, there’s always a risk attached but standing on the edge ‘Worrying’ whether to jump, doesn’t get you anywhere.

But baby, just when this world seems mean and cold, our love comes shining red and gold, and all the rest is by the way…

How right Knopfler is, as I’ve found out. There’s always someone or something when everything had turned brown and hit the fan, that comes along and changes your world for the better. I’m not saying it will happen today or tomorrow, if that’s where you find yourself today – but take it from me, it will and when you look back you’ll know exactly when that moment was. I know when that was and can't say I've ever 'Worried' since.

And you'll find, the World isn’t mean and cold, people are. And a lot of time we are scared of what folk might think of us and that's what stops us taking the plunge. But take it from me that the sun will shine again for you and go and chase your dream, it's right there within your reach waiting for .

Try listening to the track and see if the 8 minutes and 31 seconds can make a difference to how you see the world around you.

So why worry now…

1,016 Marathons - 246 Ultras - 15 Marathon des Sables - 9 Guinness World Records