Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
Intro
When I was a kid, I imagined a future filled with adventure.
I grew up watching Indiana Jones movies, hiking in the woods, and devouring crime novels. I was convinced I’d grow up to be a wilderness explorer, a federal agent, or at the very least an archaeologist punching Nazis and hunting for lost treasures.
Life didn’t turn out exactly that way.
Like most people, I went to college, got married, raised a family, and built a career. Being a psychiatric nurse has been rewarding, meaningful, and occasionally exciting, but it wasn’t quite the life of adventure I imagined as a teenager.
And that’s okay.
I have no regrets. I’ve been blessed with a wonderful family, a comfortable home, and a career I’m proud of. For more than twenty years, I’ve worked hard to build a good life.
But somewhere along the way, I realized something was missing.
As I mentioned in my first post, Why I Started Struggle Bus Academy, when I reached my mid-forties I began to feel like I had drifted away from the adventurous person I used to be. The hiking, exploring, fishing, martial arts, and endless curiosity of my younger years had slowly been replaced by responsibilities, schedules, and routines.
That’s not a complaint. It’s simply reality.
But it also made me realize that adventure doesn’t have to end when middle age begins.
Adventure Isn’t Just for Young People
For some reason, our culture treats adventure and security as opposites.
Adventure is for the young. Security is for the old.
Adventure means risk. It means the possibility of getting hurt, failing, or looking foolish. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become much more aware of those risks.
Getting hurt is a real concern.
Recently, my youngest daughter took off running toward a busy street. I sprinted after her and felt a pop in my left calf as I caught up. I spent the rest of the day limping around. Two weeks later, convinced I had recovered, I played in our church softball league. The moment I ran toward first base, I tore it again.
When you’re twenty, injuries are inconveniences. When you’re forty-seven, they’re calendar events.
Failure feels different, too.
Making a major career change at twenty-five is one thing. Doing it at forty or fifty can affect your family, finances, and future. Years ago, a psychiatrist friend asked if I had ever considered medical school. I thanked him for the vote of confidence but told him I was too old.
I was thirty.
Looking back, I wasn’t really too old. I was simply weighing the risks differently.
And then there’s the fear of looking ridiculous.
I’ve seen articles claiming men over fifty shouldn’t wear cargo shorts or graphic T-shirts because they make us look immature. My response is simple:
You’ll have to pry my cargo shorts from my cold, dead hands.
They’re comfortable, practical, and full of pockets. That’s all the justification I need.
Adventure Doesn’t Have to Be Extreme
The good news is that adventure doesn’t have to involve climbing Everest or searching for lost artifacts.
In middle age, adventure can look different.
It might mean learning a musical instrument. Taking a class. Starting a side project. Hiking a trail you’ve never explored before. Launching a blog. Training for a 5K. Learning a new language.
Adventure is really about growth.
It’s about doing something that stretches you beyond your comfort zone and reminds you that life is still unfolding.
We may not be in our physical prime anymore, but that doesn’t mean we’re finished learning, exploring, or challenging ourselves.
Far from it.
Why Men Need Challenge
Psychologist Erik Erikson described middle adulthood as the stage of Generativity vs. Stagnation.
Generativity involves investing in others—raising families, mentoring younger people, and contributing to society. It’s an important and worthwhile stage of life.
But the opposite side of that equation is stagnation.
Stagnation happens when we stop growing. When we stop learning. When we convince ourselves that our best years are behind us.
That’s where I found myself.
I wasn’t unhappy. I wasn’t depressed.
I was stuck.
I felt like I had lost some mastery over my body, my energy, and my sense of possibility.
One of my biggest motivations for changing course is health. The prospect of cognitive decline and diseases like Alzheimer’s worries me. Research consistently shows that physical activity, lifelong learning, and mental engagement help support brain health as we age.
In other words, continuing to challenge ourselves isn’t just fun.
It’s good for us.
My Plan
One of the goals of Struggle Bus Academy is to encourage lifelong growth—both for myself and for anyone who wants to come along for the ride.
I want my fifties to be my best decade.
That means pursuing adventure again, even if it looks different than it did when I was twenty.
Some of the adventures I’m considering include:
- Getting back into shape
- Learning to play the banjo
- Making hiking a major part of my life again
- Returning to skateboarding after a 30-year hiatus
The skateboarding one admittedly carries some risk.
I’ll be wearing every pad known to mankind.
Conclusion
I wasn’t having a midlife crisis. I was having a midlife awakening.
If you’ve been feeling stuck lately, maybe what you’re missing isn’t a vacation, a new gadget, or a bigger television.
Maybe what you’re missing is adventure.
Not the Hollywood kind.
The kind that comes from learning something new, challenging yourself, and proving that growth doesn’t stop at forty, fifty, or sixty.
This month, pick one thing.
Learn a skill. Take a class. Hike a trail. Start a project.
Then jump on the Struggle Bus with me and let’s see where the road leads.
About the Author
Rob Rice is a nurse educator, writer, husband, father, and lifelong learner. After more than two decades in nursing and mental health, he started Struggle Bus Academy to document his journey toward better health, personal growth, new skills, and a more adventurous life. His goal is simple: to make his fifties his best decade yet.
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