Day 310 - Ill-Defined Success

Here's a sign in the elementary school gym where my youngest plays basketball.

Can you read that nifty slogan?

It says "Success is getting up just one more time than you fall down."

I don't call that success. I call that bad counting.

You start doing something. You fall down. You get up. You fall down. You get up. You stop falling down. Success!

You don't get up... one more time. You can't get up more times than you fall down.

Ok, I suppose you could argue the case that if you start your activity on the ground, you have to "get up" to start, but there aren't that many activities you start on your ass. Besides, the point of the poster is to point out that when you do fall, you need to get back up.

And that's not really even success. It's determination.

For example... Running every day for a year is not success. It's a shit-load of determination, though. And a dump truck full of stupidity. But not success.

The success is in using the running as a means to reconnect with myself and to become the person I want to be. Who I used to be. When I feel that, I will declare success... with a big "Mission Accomplished" banner.

In the mean time, I think I'm going to print up an edit that says "the same number of times that", sneak in before the games start, and tape it over that embarrassment.

Good running,
Doug

Numbers: 3.1 miles on streets.