Quitters, Campers & Climbers

My hubby got the chance to attend a seminar where motivational speaker Erik Weihenmayer spoke. Erik is a blind adventurer. And when I say adventurer, I mean, HARD CORE. He was the first blind man to reach the summit of Mount Everest, the first blind man to complete the Leadville 100 mountain bike race, he's a marathon runner, adventure racer....the list goes on. I didn't hear him speak, but J shared with me a little bit of info about him and the following excerpt from his book, The Adversity Advantage, where he defines the difference in "Quitters, Campers and Climbers."

- Quitters simply give up on the ascent (the pursuit of an enriching life) and as a result are often embittered.

- Campers generally work hard, apply themselves, pay their dues and do what it takes to reach a certain level. Then they plant their tent stakes down at their current elevation.

- Climbers are the rare breed who continue to learn, grow, strive and improve until their final breath, who look at life and say: "I gave it my all."

I know I've hit certain points in my life where I've felt like all of these. However, I'm constantly searching for ways to improve myself and my goal is to always be a climber! Not literally because I'm afraid of heights :-) , but I find myself yearning to always be better. A better wife, better friend, better employee, better volunteer, better Helen. Erik's ability to work past his disadvantage and push his body and mind to the limits is inspirational. We all have our own disadvantages, our own short comings and there is never a shortage of road blocks in life. It's what we DO when things get in our way that make us who we are.

It's so wonderful to be able to look at others and gain inspiration from their stories, but do we look at ourselves enough to be inspired by our own stories?

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