The celebrated American mythologist Joseph Campbell developed the theory that most mythic hero stories involve a 17-step journey, with stages such as "The Call to Adventure" and "The Road of Trials."
It seemed like an appropriate subject to mull Monday at the Canada Open, as Serena Williams embarked on the final leg of her prospective journey to a calendar-year Grand Slam.
Is it mere coincidence that -- barring a last-minute change of schedule -- Williams, entering Monday, was exactly 17 match wins from hoisting the US Open trophy?
The first of those 17 steps might have been called "Business as Usual," given the kind of year Williams has been having at major events. Williams is the top seed in Toronto and had a first-round bye. But she looked sluggish and ineffective at the outset of her second-round debut against the versatile, agile Italian Flavia Pennetta.
After failing to hold serve in the first set, Williams shook out the cobwebs, dialed in her game, and ran away with the match in an hour and 36 minutes, 2-6, 6-3, 6-0.
Once again, Williams was playing with fire. Once again, her opponent got burned. If she keeps turning the conventional wisdom on its ear, by the end of this year we may decide counting your chickens before they're hatched is a terrific idea, or that teaching an old dog new tricks is a piece of cake.
No coach in his right mind would prescribe going the distance in three-set matches as ideal preparation for winning a Grand Slam event, much less accomplishing the Grand Slam. Yet here is Williams, a survivor of 15 three-setters this year (in 42 matches), steaming toward that historic achievement.
Of those 15 three-setters, Williams was truly living dangerously the seven times she lost the first set. Nearly half of those matches (3) were at the French Open, which has not only been the most challenging major for Williams, but also the most pivotal in her hero's journey to the Slam.
In fact, no matter what else happens, her 2015 French title will probably represent Williams' career triumph over on-court adversity. Yet even going the distance at Roland Garros hasn't entirely rekindled her mojo on a regular basis, as Heather Watson demonstrated at Wimbledon when she pushed Williams to the brink of elimination.
A comparison of Williams' recent Grand Slam scores and those she posted at last year's US Open are a testament to her travails. Williams didn't lose a set en route to the title in 2014, and no player took more than four games off her in any give set.
That's a far cry from what Williams has endured thus far in 2015 at the majors, but then this is the year of her hero's journey, and the one thing that isn't supposed to be is easy.