” We are very sorry but the tournament will have to start 15 minutes late,” the announcement came over the loudspeaker.

The concrete floor of the convention center bounced up the noise of more than a hundred people, mostly kids in their Karate outfits, but we couldn’t start yet. There was a problem with parking and they wanted to make sure everyone was there.

My karate daughter was waiting for her turn to compete, and fighting the feeling of overwhelming chaos and nerves.

Competition is tense in the best of circumstances. Just like a prairie dog, in these heightening situations we pop up to scan the scenery for anything unusual. Is that danger? DO I need to run? Do I need to fight? What’s that tiny motion over there?

This was not a quiet prairie. The roar of noise, and constant stimulation had us stretched tight. There were so many things that needed attention.

Human bodies have another response to threat. Science has observed that when in threat our extremities will get less blood, and our blood flow will go to the main organs to keep them as well –supported as possible. And our senses will narrow; In high anxiety vision has been known to narrow into tunnel vision. Human eyesight will actually drop the information of the peripheral vision.

LOOK HERE. ONLY HERE. NOTHING ELSE.

There are reasons for both of these responses. In that big tournament hall tunnel vision would have been nice. It was clear we were not in actual danger. That prairie dog response was not helpful.

But I was not up for competition, nonetheless I had a lot of reason to be nervous and pay wider attention to make sure I handled what needed to be done.

I am a human, and I have choices. I chose to block out most of the noise so I could focus on what was most important.

Like the next loudspeaker announcement. “We are sorry, the competition will be delayed for 15 minutes again.”

I could switch between the two states. Wide awareness of the horizon would have to be taken again when we needed to move to another section, and then I could narrow the focus again when I was able to stay in one place.

I’ve had practice with the zoom controls on my focus. I am far from perfect. But it was a lot easier for me.

The awareness and the choice are key. There are a lot of things tugging for my attention. I have to come first or I lose the ability to choose where I need to focus. It’s always moving.