(IN) COURAGE

There are lots of books, posts, memes about Failure and the ‘up-side’ of it. Been wanting to write something about failure.  

Quite honestly, I don’t know where to start, or what to highlight but thought to share a few things, knowing I can come back to this topic.

One of my Martial Arts inspirations is Muay Thai Fighter, Sylvie Von-Duuglas. She has had several posts about getting back up and perseverance. When she first moved to Thailand, many laughed at her goal of 50 fights.  

Now, she has nearly 300 fights in Thailand, and only knocked down once. ONCE!
You can see a photo here: Muay Thai Resurrection and Other Photos by Maestoso Top [pics] (8limbsus.com). 

There have been many ‘failures’ for me, and it wasn’t the experience of failing as much as the feeling of shame.  It’s an overwhelming feeling that I wasn’t enough or reaching perfection, especially compared to others.

From not getting good enough grades, not fitting in, to failing tests and sports tryouts.  Being told ‘girls shouldn’t be architects,’ to ‘girls can’t punch hard and shouldn’t learn to fight’.

Been there, done that. BUT I honestly feel that Tenacity wins.

In my first blog post I wrote that in November 2022, I passed the 6th and final exam to be a Licensed Architect. It took nearly 5 years facing multiple failures.
BUT I did it and so happy that I didn’t give up.  

Just before passing my final exam, I made two lists. One was a ‘bucket list’ or promises to fulfill. The other was a list of every time I overcame failure.
There are a number of other moments in my life of facing failure. Many I keep to myself or those close to me but wanted to share a few here.

Beginning with not performing well with my pre-school entrance exam, and later nearly failing Third Grade. All through grade school, I was an ‘average C’ student that struggled.  Then, I started off college by failing a class my first year

BUT I ended up on the Dean’s List, and earned a master’s degree in 5 years, ending my last Thesis Semester with straight A’s.

During grade school and high-school, I was NOT athletic and remember practicing at all hours of the day to just try to get better but didn’t go very far.

Now, I’ve Trained in Thailand, fought Full Contact Muay Thai and earned Black Belts in two different styles of Martial Arts.  

Speaking of fighting and being knocked down, during my fight she pushed me down in the ring.  All I can remember was being beyond exhausted and tired. Heck, I felt that way at weigh-ins.  

But…in that moment I knew if I stayed down, I would lose. But I got back up. All I could hear in a crowd of 900 people was from her Coach yelling ‘Come On! Bully her!’  over and over. All I could think of was ‘not today’.  Maybe that is a post for another time. 

After winning my fight, I took my medal and put it in a frame for my nieces, along with a favorite poem Desiderata: Original Text, hoping that it can inspire them.

As a teacher/coach, I’ve shared these, not to boast, but to let people know they are not alone. My hope is to help them understand quitting means you don’t get another chance, BUT with perseverance, and focused effort it is possible to overcome.  

Fear tries to stop us, but remember he is a liar.