Determined To Succeed

Do any of you guys remember Steve Martin’s “The Jerk?” In the movie his character gets so excited at the prospect of the new phone book arriving he screams “The new phone book is here! The new phone book is here!” Yesterday, I received two extremely important boxes from Fedex. They were my t-shirts. I ordered them a couple of weeks ago for my website and they came. My friends. My new phone book is here. Or should I say part of my dream made real.

It’s easy to say “OK, now what?” But just opening up the boxes and looking at shirts that I ordered with this website’s address and logo on them made me take a step back and say “I am doing it. I have lost weight and kept it off. I am living my dream of writing about it and helping people to do it themselves.”

That is a wonderful feeling.

Yesterday’s blog was about getting back up despite a stumble and continuing on this weight loss journey. I did it after I gorged myself on Chinese food the other night (I still can’t believe myself – ick. What a food hangover). But today, as I head into this weekend facing my 39^th birthday tomorrow (the first without my mom) I am fortified in knowing I am living out my dream.

The Battle of The Final Three goes as well as expected. I’m still trying to re-lose the final remaining grief weight from losing my mom and there are many temptations (like cookies or the pizza and wings at the event I attended last night) and ice-cold Coca-Colas in my path. Sigh. Given the stresses in life they do feel good. I am human, and like someone wise once said that the highest peaks of success always go through the lowest valleys of failure. So I know I will win this Battle of the Final Three. Just that it’s taking longer than I thought.

But that’s OK. I still got up this morning, put on one of my own t-shirts and worked out. That feeling alone was amazing. To know that everything that has happened over this past three-and-a-half years has brought me to a point where my weight and health are more under control than they ever have been. That I can help others achieve their own success but simply letting them know I am human, too, and that we will get there together. That one day, all of our dreams will be made real.

And for now, as I proudly wear my t-shirt I know that I’ve made part of my dreams, my goals, very real. Not just because of a shirt. But because of the determination to succeed, because of the drive and because of the fact we are all worth the time, effort, blood, sweat and tears of losing weight. We are so worth all of that because if you have a dream you should grab onto it with both hands and hold on tight…

…no matter what kind of shirt you’re wearing while doing it.