Major milestones in our lives offer an opportunity to reflect. Such has been my spring. And as I have been reminiscing, I have been reminded of the many ups and downs that make up a life. For me, for my friends, and for my family, life has not always turned out the way we thought it would. Woven through the fabric of the many celebrations and achievements in our lives are a fair share of failures.
As we celebrated an impressive freshman year and an outstanding grade in college calculus, I was reminded of the struggles it took to get through my daughter’s first AP course. School was not as easy for her as it was for her older sister.
As we celebrated awards and honors and some amazing achievements as she graduated college, I was reminded of the devastation when my oldest was cut from the musical “Little Shop of Horrors” her junior year without ever even having the chance to read for the part she wanted. She cried for days.
As I transition to a new job, I am reminded of the year I was so ready for my first administrative job. I’d earned the degree. I’d done all of the preparing, and I was sure the next administrative job was mine. When circumstances caused me to miss the interview and someone else got the job I believed should have been mine, I was disappointed. I was more than disappointed.
But as strange as this is going to sound, I am so grateful for the failures. I may appreciate them even more than the successes.
With my daughter’s struggles in school came a strong work ethic, an ability to persevere, and an understanding of how to “do school”. With my daughter’s loss of a part in the musical came an even greater ability to be humble, compassionate, and sympathetic. Having to wait for my first chance to lead as an administrator helped me learn patience and taught me that with time things work out.
My children are the amazing human beings they are today not because they have always been successful but because they learned how to respond with positivity, grace, and grit when things went wrong.
Failure is not an option. Failure is a guarantee. At some point we all fail. Reaching for our dreams, imagining a different future, trying something new all mean risking failure. And when we fail, we learn.
Take risks. Try something that scares you. Set what one of my friends calls stretch goals. Imagine that you can go well beyond what you thought was your limit physically, intellectually, or emotionally. And decide now that when you fail, and you will, that you will maintain a positive attitude, persevere, and learn from it.
Every experience, every success, every failure make us who are. Appreciate them all!
Be That Person 