Is Close Considered a Victory?

"You will achieve grand dream, a day at a time, so set goals for each day -- not long and difficult projects, but chores that will take you, step by step, toward your rainbow. Write them down, if you must, but limit your list so that you won't have to drag today's undone matters into tomorrow. Remember that you cannot build your pyramid in twenty-four hours. Be patient. Never allow your day to become so cluttered that you neglect your most important goal -- to do the best you can, enjoy this day, and rest satisfied with what you have accomplished." ---Og Mandino

A passing thought before I head to bed. A woman asked me today while waiting for my handsome son to get out of his kindergarten class, how I was going to celebrate my weight loss victory. I explained that I was not finished. Her comment caught me off guard. She said, good grief you are close enough you look great. Then playfully grabbed my shirt and tugged on it.

When did coming close become a victory? I know, in sports and in the Olympics, we are taught that winning is not everything. It is competing and having fun, giving it your all. However, I do not know one Olympic athlete or any athlete on any level that set out for close. I did not start this journey to come close to my original goal. I set out with a goal in mind and that is where I will celebrate. I appreciated the comment and even the little flirtatious tugging of the shirt; it was grand for my ego. However, this is just one more example of how the world conspires to keep you from achieving your end goal. Just think of all the people of the world that were so close to their dream or goal; only to quit just shy of reaching it.

"After the cheers have died down and the stadium is empty, after the headlines have been written and after you are back in the quiet of your room and the championship ring has been placed on the dresser and all the pomp and fanfare has faded, the enduring things that are left are: the dedication to excellence, the dedication to victory, and the dedication to doing with our lives the very best we can to make the world a better place in which to live." ---Vince Lombardi

"I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self." ---Aristotle

"On the shores of hesitation, bleach the bones of countless millions, who at the dawn of victory, sat to wait and waiting died." ---Author Unknown