What is the question??

To fail or not to fail....that is the question.  I love those Pinterest quotes in flowing letters with a sweaty runner sprinting along a backwoods road or the back of a person looking pensively out over the ocean.  The words are always inspiring....like, "Failure is not getting up after you fall"..or.."Success is falling down 7 times and getting up 8."   I am guilty of doggedly repinning such comments because sometimes knowing that other people have struggles in life just seems to help propel me out of a slump.  It feels good to be understood and to know that someone else has been where I am.

A friend and I were chatting about how I am doing after retiring from my dream job.  In an earlier post I told my sad, sordid story about being diagnosed with asthma and finding it necessary to leave my beloved role as a firefighter paramedic.  He was in the process of encouraging me to see the 11 years I had in the service as a huge gift, not everyone gets to live their absolute dream.  I agreed with him.  He pressed on further saying, "Don't feel like this is a failure.  You didn't fail at being a firefighter.  You chose to retire in order to keep your coworkers safe and not compromise them on a call in case you had trouble breathing."  Yes, I agreed with that too.  And then I rattled off something that I've since thought about a bit more.  I replied, "I never fail, I just reposition!"  

Those of you who know me, know that I am more full of sass than sweet on most days (not my best trait by far)... but it has helped me push through some difficult situations.  I'm just bull-headed enough to always ask the question, "Why not me??"  And off I go to seize the day or at least make progress.   

But I think I had a really rare moment of genius in that reply.  Seriously.  So one tack doesn't work at getting you where you want to be.  One approach ends in a less than successful result.  You don't have to be Einstein to figure out that you need to try something different!  Reposition.  Stand back and look at the situation.  Give yourself a bit of a breather to allow for different synapses in your brain to engage.  And go at it again.  And again.  By persistently working towards something that is important to you, you accomplish SO much.  You show yourself what you are made of.  Even if no one else ever sees. You know that you did it.  You hung in there and by george you got it.  You also start an inner dialogue that goes something like this, "Huh...since I was able to accomplish THAT by blood, sweat, and swears and the grace of God, what ELSE might I achieve if only I try??"

Sticking with something until you grasp it feels terrific.  There are few feelings like it.  You start to realize that there really is no limit to what you can do.

So don't be afraid of that big goal.  Throw some effort at it.  If that doesn't work, reposition...repeat.

I'm rounding a corner finally.  It's been a tough summer getting through leaving the fire service.  Man let me tell you.  The thought of never again driving code to a scene and walking into a residence to help someone through the worst day of their life just tears me up inside.  But I'm working through it.  It's gonna take some time. But IN time, I will start to dream another dream.  I will reach again.  And you, my hapless reader, will get to read all about it. :)  There will probably be a ton of repositioning that goes on.  But I call that a success.

Make it a great day!!