“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” – Theodore Roosevelt
My kickboxing instructor told me to look this quote up during our lesson today. I had mentioned how I ran last night, and – being pretty much last – was a sweaty, disgusting mess. I told him how it didn’t seem like other people had to exert as much effort as I did, and it sort of made me feel embarrassed.
He said, “Hey, at least you tried, and you did it. That’s all that matters.”
I’m sure this is a trite quote, but it speaks to me right now in all my disgusting, sweaty (slow) glory.
Have a good night, everyone. Be kind to yourselves.
The Cool Kids