One of my favorite things to do, both as a child and as an adult was to sit down with a big tub of popcorn, and soda in front of a huge move screen and see it come to vibrant life. I learned a lot from that world, and find myself using various lessons and inspirations directly from the movies that I have seen over the years.
One such movie is Miracle, the story of the 1980 Olympic Hockey Team. It’s one of my favorites, and my wife always chuckles each time I watch it. You see I’m always looking for inspiring things to pass along to my readers, so every time I watch it, there is a pen and paper in my hand. No matter how many times I watch it, there are some great gems. Here are a few of my favorites:
- “It’s a pretty lofty goal, Herb.” “That’s why I want to pursue it.”
- “Win, lose, or tie, we are going to play like champions.”
- “Great moments are born from great opportunities. That’s what you have here tonight. That’s what you’ve earned. This is your time. You were born to be hockey players. You were meant to be here.”
You really can’t get more encouraging words than that. How many of us strive to play as champions, no matter what the outcome? How many times in our lives do we find out what we are meant to do, how many of us are “hockey players” in our own right? It’s true that opportunities abound, but so very few of use actually meet the challenges of daily life head on and make our own opportunities.
It’s just like Herb said in the movie – he wants to pursue the lofty goal, simply because it is lofty, a challenge. Nothing truly worth anything is easy to obtain, and sometimes the sheer challenge makes it that much more valuable.
So the question becomes, what is your “Miracle” story? What lofty goal will you tackle and achieve next? More importantly, though, what are you willing to do, to sacrifice to reach the goal, and become who you truly are?