One morning, after giving my hair a trim that might’ve made even Edward Scissorhands raise an eyebrow, I decided to conquer the Everest of household chores: vacuuming. Feeling pretty accomplished, I tackled the final boss – hooking the hand vac onto its designated hook in the laundry room. Now, you wouldn’t think this would be a Herculean task, right? But as it turns out, that hook had other ideas.

Picture this: me, standing there, holding the hand vac like a warrior brandishing a sword, and the hook, sly and elusive, refusing to cooperate. My initial attempts were met with failure. Did I get discouraged? Nah, not this time. I knew it wasn’t going to hook itself, and giving up wasn’t an option. I had no choice but to persist. I had a goal, and that goal was the hook.

So, I channeled my inner Rocky Balboa and kept at it. Every fumble, every near miss only strengthened my resolve. And then, just when I thought I might be dealing with an inanimate object possessed by a mischievous spirit, click! The hand vac was securely in place. Cue the victory dance (which, let’s be honest, probably looked more like an interpretive dance by someone who’s just stepped on a Lego).

This little saga got me thinking – what if I regarded all my successes through this lens? If I don’t persist, I won’t achieve greater success. Simple as that. It leaves me with no choice but to keep pushing forward. My goal, in every endeavor, is the hook. Sometimes it’s a literal hook for the vacuum; other times, it’s that promotion at work, a fitness milestone, or even maintaining a healthy work-life balance. The principle remains the same: if I don’t persist, I’ll never get there.

And in those moments when the hook seems particularly out of reach, I find solace in the wisdom of scripture. As it says in Galatians 6:9 (NIV),

“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

So, here’s to persisting, to not giving up, and to finally getting that vac on the hook – in life and in the laundry room.

Raise your glasses high, dear friends, for today we celebrate,
The guardians of tenderness, the ones who never hesitate,
To wrap us in their warmth, like petals in a delicate embrace,
Mothers, whose love is a bouquet, adorned with every grace.

In every mother’s heart, there blooms a flower fair,
With hues of patience, kindness, and the strength to always care.
Each blossom tells a story, of laughter and of tears,
Of whispered dreams at twilight, and overcoming fears.

Like a bouquet, their love is rich, in shades both bold and bright,
A symphony of colors, weaving through the darkest night.
They gather fragrant memories, like blooms in springtime air,
And offer them to us with love, a gift beyond compare.

Some may be as vibrant as a scarlet rose in bloom,
With passion burning brightly, banishing the gloom.
Others gentle as a lily, with grace that knows no end,
Their love a soothing balm, a shelter for a friend.

Just like the petals in a bouquet, each mother’s love is unique,
A tapestry of sweetness, tender, pure, and meek.
So let us raise our glasses, to mothers far and near,
Whose love is like a bouquet, forever cherished, dear.

Happy Mother’s Day!

“On your marks. Set. Go!” As we know, these are the words the starter says before pulling the pistol trigger to commence a race. After athletes begin, their end goal is to finish as quickly as possible. Toward that end, although they may glance in their peripherals to monitor the field, they do not stop along the way to check how they are doing. If any competitor did this, they would lose the benefit of momentum and by the time they restarted and got back into stride, everyone else would be way ahead.

Many times, we start a project, aspiration or personal goal and stop before we get to the end. Maybe because we get distracted, tired, discouraged, or even forget what we are heading towards. We may discover that we are in the wrong race. A coach, mentor or accountability buddy becomes invaluable in keeping us spirited enough to keep moving forward or enabling us to vector in a more appropriate direction.

“And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.”

2 Thessalonians 3:13

This verse serves as a poignant reminder to persevere in our endeavors, even when faced with challenges or setbacks.

Bob Bowman was the coach behind Michael Phelps’, the most decorated Olympian of all time. Michael amassed 28 medals, 23 of which were gold. Bob, in a talk sponsored by ASU’s First-Year Success Center, addressed hundreds of students on how to work toward achieving excellence. He said that in one of Michael’s races his goggles filled with water, yet he still managed to win and even set a world record. This resulted because Michael spent years honing his craft, learning to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. “There can be no growth without discontent,” Bob said. His end goal was to win gold medals.

We want to make sure we clearly define our goals, determine what it would take to get there, employ competent guidance, and get to work. Some days will be harder, and others will be easier. The path is not a straight line to success but overtime we get there.

“Michael learned skills so that under pressure, he could perform. Don’t try to make everything perfect for yourself — be tough on yourself.”

Bob Bowman

We are each pursuing our own goal medals and we will keep swimming, water filled goggles or not.