Confucius Say

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall." -- Confucius

I would have to say I agree with this statement - not just as it applies to running, but as it applies to life.

But since this is about my marathon training, let's start with the running element. Rising and falling can be literal or figurative. I figuratively fell off my training last week . . . as I confessed a few days ago. And I am struggling to rise again. I need to get that 10-miler in. I know I can do it, but with the heat index at 110 degrees or so I'm dreading it. And I fell off the "rest and eat well" aspect of my training. And I didn't get to Hot Yoga to cross train. Some would argue that I had a good excuse - it was closing weekend of Merry Wives - I used the excuse myself! Yet if I'm going to achieve my goals I need to get off my butt and run.

I have to laugh though at the quote as well, because at the closing party I was petting the host's six-month-old puppy and in it's enthusiasm, the puppy knocked my glass of red wine all over me. I raced off to the bathroom and on the way, ran into the puppy's cage and face-planted on the floor. Talk about a FALL. Of course I jumped up and finished my 50 yard dash to the bathroom and rinsed the wine from my linen skirt. Would you call my rise from the kitchen floor and untangling myself from the dog cage part of my "greatest glory"? Does it apply to that? I was tipsy enough to not even notice how hard I hit the floor. Yesterday I could hardly get out of bed I was so bruised by the fall!

And of course we might take Confucius' quote in a less literal way and apply it to life. I can certainly apply it to my career. How often do I "fall" or "fail" to get work? And yet I continue to audition. Believe it or not, hearing no over and over again is painful.

And what about "falling" in love (or lust)? Regardless of the outcome, I rise and try again in spite of the "bruises."

Is that part of our "greatest glory?" Or are we just gluttons for punishment? It hurts to fall down and yet we rise and continue down the path - maybe more carefully, maybe not. Maybe in another direction, maybe not. Maybe more slowly, maybe not. And we might fall down many more times. And we might not cross that figurative (or literal) finish line.

I guess I understand Confucius to mean that the human struggle to overcome and triumph (however big or small) is our greatest glory. Isn't that why we root for the underdog? Isn't that why human interest stories are so compelling? Think of some of the atheletes or teams we celebrate and how they have fallen and risen again - Lance Armstrong and the Red Sox are two examples that come quickly to mind.

So having fallen, I will pick myself up, brush myself off and continue down the path - no matter how bruised I may be or how much it might hurt. Because the greatest glory is meeting the challenge and victory is crossing the finish line.