“Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure… than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” -Theodore Roosevelt
When I think mighty, I think this. Some people spend their entire lives never taking risks. Playing it safe, convincing themselves they’ve lived a good life when in reality they have not. That might sound harsh, but it’s the truth.
We all want to be remembered but to be remembered requires work. People spend their whole lives climbing a ladder only to realize the ladder was leaning against the wrong wall (thanks Steven Covey!). If you ask someone they will say this is not them, that they are happy. And occasionally they’ll remember that dream they had as a child, quickly burying it, saying it was nothing more than a dream. But when do missed dreams start becoming regret? Well, the instant you starting saying a dream isn’t worth pursuing.
We create our own barriers and a lot of our pain is self inflicted. We spend too much time worrying, afraid of an always uncertain future. We live anywhere but in the present moment. We are afraid that we’ll go through life unloved and the people we thought were closest, couldn’t be furthest. In the conquest of life, we don’t think of battles won, we fear of wars lost.
To be mighty, is to be strong. It is easier to keep your head down, to curl up into a ball and close your eyes. But to truly live… One must reach and fall short, not once, but many times. There’s a reason we dream of heroes, it’s a shame we can never truly see ourselves as one.
If you’re afraid, simply start. I’d rather look back at my life and say “at least I tried.” then to ask “what exactly have I done?”. Life is an adventure and should be celebrated. So go out and be mighty, as there is no time like the present… Be the hero of your own story.
To the Moon 