The Olympics have just concluded in Paris. Athletes from all over the world have dreamed big, aimed for the moon and put their best foot forward. Some have won and some lost. Some hearts have been broken, some have swelled with pride, and others have overflown with tears. But virtually none has been left lukewarm. For glory comes to everyone who guns for it, and not just to the victors.
You know, I always maintain that children give you an opportunity not to teach, but to learn, and my daughter is no exception. Just the other day, for instance, her school results emerged, and it turned out that she’s scored a 100 percent in history. Now, this astounded me. Even her teachers admitted that it’s common for students to score 100% in maths or science, but history? I asked my daughter what her secret was. She put it very simply: “The impossible is the only thing worth aiming for.”
I was dumbstruck! “The impossible is the only thing worth aiming for!” Such wisdom in a teenager! And yet, we so often limit our dreams, lower our aim, toeing the line we’ve been told to toe: to be realistic, grounded. But we forget that it’s the roots that need to be grounded, so that the branches can shoot up. Instead, we prune our own branches to stay close to the ground.
I’m willing to take a good bet that none of the Olympians, whether they won or lost, turned up thinking, “Let me stay low key, just get through the tournament and return home”. Sounds absurd, right? Yet, that’s what we often do in life: play it safe, think small, get by without ruffling feathers. But look where that gets us: to mediocrity, unfulfilled dreams, emptiness; a wistful and lingering ‘what might’ve been’ feeling.
No; that is simply not the credo at Healthwatch. Here, mistakes are punished only if repeated endlessly. The mistake that is punished readily is asking too little of ourselves; not aiming for the stars, being afraid.
Let us learn courage from the Olympians and the youngsters. That life is too poor that cannot afford to aim; that mind is too weak that does not dare to dream. Let’s be gallant with our goals, and lavish with our longing. For in pursuit of the impossible, we may end up revisiting our definition of what’s possible.
Have an ambitious month!
