When faced with a challenge, do you give up or persist?
See that photo? It's of a hiking trial in Maroon Bells outside of Aspen, Colorado. I walked that trail a few years ago.
It wasn't all that difficult—most of the time. But this particular stretch was interesting. Steep. I found myself stumbling over rocks when I was already weary. But it was doable. I think of the writing journey in much the same way. It's exhilarating. Difficult. Interesting. Uphill. Occasionally you may stumble, and it's wearying.
But it's doable. One of the inspiring thoughts that has motivated me came from a sermon I heard in the early 1990s. The pastor, Robert Emmitt from Community Bible Church in San Antonio, said, "It's better to try and know for sure than to do nothing and always wonder." I took that advice to heart. It has served me well.
If we don't act on our dreams and goals, we'll never know what we could have accomplished. If we don't persist when we face a challenge, we'll never know, "what if?"
I'm still on my writing journey. I've trekked uphill. I've stumbled over obstacles. Occasionally, I get weary. But then, sometimes it's exhilarating. So still, I persist!