Perhaps you’ve forgotten how resilient you actually are?

There they were, relics from a different time in my life. Two good sized pieces of crystal with my name engraved in both. I forgot I even had them. These were given to me in recognition of exceeding sales performance expectations from earlier in my professional career. Actually, these weren’t given to me.

I earned them.

While results get the recognition, they never really tell the entire story of what it took to get those results, of what was endured in the process, of what you had to grow through and who you needed to grow into to earn a symbolic piece of crystal with your name on it.

As I unpacked these towel-wrapped pieces from the unmarked cardboard box which had been in the attic for more than 25 years, this older version of me was reminded of who this younger version of me was when I was received these trophies. I remember the challenges of this sales position and the difficult task I had willingly agreed to take on. My focus then shifted toward remembering the challenges I was facing simply being me at that time. The doubts, the fears, the anxiety, the pressure. Yet, somehow that version of me was able to stand at the base of this daunting mountain of a challenge and reach a summit which had never once felt remotely possible for me. It was a brutal climb, bruised and bloodied, but I guess I just kept climbing.

This older version of me cracked a little bit of a smile. I was proud of that younger version of me.

I try not to look back in life. There’s a lot in the rear view mirror that I really don’t wish to re-experience. The losses, the pains, the regrets, the mountains I wasn’t able to climb. Sometimes, though, looking back reminds us of a level of resilience we often forget we have. As they say, looking back allows you to see how far you’ve come. And from today’s vantage point, we’ve all come quite far, somehow finding that inner resilience when needed to scale our own mountains life often gives us to climb.

I’m grateful for the mountains life has given me and how they’ve help to shape me into who I am today.

Life doesn’t provide you with an engraved piece of crystal for reaching the top of your mountain.

The real prize is who you become in the process.

No matter where you are on the mountains of your life, be proud of how far you’ve come and who you’ve become in your process.

You’ve made it this far.

Just keep climbing.

Photo by Ansgar Scheffold on Unsplash

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