Failure is not fatal; Success is not permanent

When I was young I would quit anything that I was not almost instantly good at doing and I would rarely do things that would make me feel less than others.  When I was 12 years old, I played Little League Baseball and for two summers I struck out every single time.  I never got a hit.  I prayed and prayed, "Please let me get one hit! Just once." But it never happened.

Later in my life, I became very successful and took credit for everything, but I failed and did everything I could to cover my mistakes and even lied about it.  Eventually lying became the rule.  After I got sober, I vowed to live a life of truth and today I try very hard to be honest and have integrity, even when I make mistakes.  Today I am a marathon runner, but I am not good at it.  I just never quit.  This year I have a goal to run 11 marathons - half and full.  The year is half over and I have run 1 full marathon, 5 half marathons and many shorter races.

I am reminded of a statement made by Michael Jordan "I have mised more than 9,000 shots, lost almost 300 games, on 26 occasions have been entrusted to take the game-winning shot ... and missed.  I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."