To those who feel like quitting

While chopping up vegetables, the knife slipped and I gave myself a sizeable gash. I bit my lip so I wouldn’t scream.

“Why?!” I thought with helplessness. I was trying to eat more healthily, and injury was my reward? What was the point of attempting to make a positive change when it caused me such pain?

I’ve noticed this has been a common theme in my life. No, not having mishaps with sharp objects (I chalk that one up to pure klutziness). It just feels like whenever I’ve come to the point where I decide to be better than I am, I suddenly face a wall of opposition.

So what do I do about it? Do I hang my head and vow to never make a goal again? Not a chance. I’ve realized I just need to try harder.

Sometimes, encountering serious opposition is a red flag that you aren’t supposed to go down a certain path. Other times, however, it means you are on the brink of excellence. As cliché as it sounds, you have to listen to your heart to know the difference between the two.

I came across a quote from Jeffrey R. Holland that says, “If for a while the harder you try, the harder it gets, take heart. So it has been with the best people who ever lived.” (His whole speech is excellent. Read it here!)

As I’m entering the last few months of my graduate program, I am getting nervous. The final project is daunting and I don’t know where to start. However, I want to do what my mother suggested and “finish in a blaze of glory.” The final stretch is not the time to wimp out.

The other frightening part is that I’ve come to the end of my list. When I was 16, I had to write down my future plans for school. My list ended with a masters degree. Yikes!

So now what do I do? To quote an academic source (namely ‘Tangled’), “Well, that’s the good part I guess. You get to go find a new dream.”

Is it going to be hard? Yes. Will I encounter opposition in the next step? Yes. Will it be worth it? Oh yes.

I may not end up changing the world, but I can always change myself for the better.  Maybe I'll fail, but at least I’m trying. After all, slicing your finger one time while chopping vegetables doesn’t make them any less healthy for you.

To quote Jeffrey R. Holland again,

“The best things are always worth finishing…Take advantage of every opportunity to learn and grow. Dream dreams and see visions. Work toward their realization. Wait patiently when you have no other choice. Lean on your sword and rest a while, but get up and fight again.” (Excerpt from the great speech “However Long and Hard the Road”)