Greatness must be earned; it is not bestowed on any of us; it can not be achieved through deceit. While you may deceive some and achieve a temporary measure of success in the short term, history will not be so kind, and it will judge you on your true character, and you will forever be deemed an insignificant fraud.
The road to greatness is a journey traveled by those of us who believe we were born to stand apart from the masses.
Those of us who recognize that the potential of greatness is within all of us but is only unleashed by those of us who do not fear the unknown.
Those of us who are unafraid to reach for what others say is impossible.
Those of us who understand that limits are merely artificial constraints created by the few to hinder the potential of the many.
Those of us who refuse to give up the colorful dreams of our childhood in favor of the colorless existence society tries to limit us to. Those of us who have an unwavering belief in ourselves and what we can accomplish.
Join us and take that step off the road of the ordinary and know you will fly, no soar with the eagles above the clouds to the road to greatness.
What if I told you life is too short to settle for being ordinary? What if I told you to be great, you have to be bold and step off the cliff? Are you ready to soar with the eagles, or are you so afraid that you’ll fall you accept being just one of many?
I didn’t see it coming. It happened so fast, and the blow was devastating; I was out before I even hit the ground. Woozy, but I could hear the count loud and clear.
One
Two
Three
Four
I’ve got to get up, I thought to myself, but the voices around me were screaming, stay down, stay down.
Five
Six
I got to my knees.
Stay down, stay down, they continued to shout.
Seven
I reached for the ropes.
Eight
I started to pull myself up.
You’re gonna get hurt. Don’t be a fool. Stay down, stay down.
Nine
I struggled to my feet.
You can’t win. Stay down, Stay down, they continued to shout.
The ref looked me in the eye and said, are you sure you want to continue? Battered but not out, I looked him back in the eye and said I ain’t done yet.
Fight
Now the fight is over, the final bell has rung, and the judge’s cards are in; the announcer takes the microphone and informs everyone of the decision.
The winner by unanimous decision and new champion!
Me! Yes Me! He said Me!
I trained for this moment.
I overcame the brutal knockdown.
I refused to listen to those who said I couldn’t win.
I refused to stay down.
I kept fighting because I believed, even if no one else did, that I could, and I would succeed, I would control my own destiny. I would be great, and now here I am, the winner and new champion. How about that.
They say they don’t believe in you, so what
They say you can’t do it, so what
They say you aren’t smart enough, so what
They say you aren’t strong enough, so what
They say you aren’t imaginative enough, so what
They say you tried and failed before, so what
They say no one has ever done it before, so what
They say only a fool would try and do it, so what
You say so what because
You know who you are
You know what you’re capable of
You know you’re strong enough
You know you’re smart enough
You know no one has ever done it, but you don’t care because you aren’t like everyone else
You know you are special, you were born to be great, and no one is going to stop you from reaching your full potential
So let them go ahead and doubt you, so what
Tell me again,
You didn’t believe in me?
Didn’t think I had it in me?
Never believed I would succeed?
That’s funny.
I mean, couldn’t you see that I am unique?
That my spirit is indomitable.
That I have an unwavering belief in myself.
That greatness was always a part of me?
Were you jealous because the moment you saw me, you knew I didn’t walk, I didn’t run, and I would never get caught in the rain because I soared above the clouds?
Didn’t you see you could never take my happiness from me?
That your opinion of me never mattered.
Every step I take confirms who I am.
I waste not one day.
I am not a passenger of destiny.
I take hold of my future, motivated to be better tomorrow than I am today.
I have never regretted taking a chance.
Because my failures do not define
me, instead, I am respected for my resolve because failure did not break me.
I embrace the journey and keep moving forward.
My dreams do not end when I wake; they begin.
So tell me again, you didn’t believe in me?
Funny.
When I first moved into my new apartment, I was gifted an African Violet as a house warming gift. I remember thinking how beautiful it was with its purple blooms. Now I’m not exactly known as someone with a green thumb, but the African Violet did not need much attention. You have to keep the soil moist to dry and allow the soil around roots to dry out before watering. It thrived in moderate to bright, indirect, indoor light. Pretty much, it was set and go and enjoy its beauty.
In the beginning, I made a point of taking great care of the plant; it was, after all, easy to do. I also found myself looking at it as a source of relaxation and motivation due to its striking color and amazing blooms. Just by looking at it, I could feel my spirits being lifted as it seemingly gave me a sense of purpose.
As the months went by, the good times were plentiful. Success seemed to be around every corner. With success, I found myself spending more time at the office as I endeavored to continue, which at the time was a rapid rise up the corporate ladder. When I wasn’t in the office, I was out networking and enjoying the social scene. During this time, I neglected my beautiful African Violet that had provided me with so much inspiration. Then as fast as the success came, the economy took a downward turn. Cutbacks were on the horizon. I survived the company purge, but the rise up the corporate ladder came to a dramatic halt. The large bonuses that I had foolishly incorporated into my budget to finance my overextended lifestyle dried up. At the same time, my girlfriend, who I believed loved me, answered the question New Edition once asked. Can you stand the rain? As you may have guessed, her answer was no, and she told me it was over. She made up some excuse about us growing apart, but it was pretty obvious the distance between us only widened as my bank account lessened.
I fell into a funk. Depressed, I cut myself off from most of the world. I frequently asked myself, why is this happening? Spend many a weekend laying in bed with no desire to get up and embrace the day. One day, I looked at my long-neglected African Violet, hoping it could once again inspire me with its beauty. When I looked at it, I saw it had stop flowering and its leaves had turned yellow. I immediately understood that it was my failure to water it and cultivate its soil because I was so busy enjoying the good times, that was. Responsible for its current condition.
I had taken it for granted and assumed that it would always be there in all its beauty as an inspiration when I needed it.
Your faith is like the African Violet; it does not require super high maintenance. But it does require that we not neglect it. Not cultivate and continue to strengthen it in the good times and expect that it will merely be there for us in times of angst. We must continue to take steps along our spiritual journey, praising the Lord for the blessings He has bestowed upon us in good times. Strengthen our belief each day so that we do not turn away from the Lord and egotistically pat ourselves on the back for achieving such success, forgetting that without the Lord, we would be nothing.
I looked at the African Violet and took steps to restore its beauty. Watering it, cultivating its soil, ensuring that it received the proper amount of sunlight. Soon its beauty began to return. It started to bloom once again. New bright and vibrant green leaves took the place of the ones that had turned yellow. My renewed commitment to the African Violet brought me a new and stronger plant and, with it, a new source of inspiration. Now each day, I look at it in all of its beauty and go out and embrace all that the world offers me, good and bad.
As with the African Violet, you can renew your faith by recommitting to the Lord. The Lord does not hold grudges and His blessings are always there for you. As you restart your spiritual journey and offer your praise unto him, you will soon see that your situation will begin to brighten in time.
Carl's Place 