FOURTEEN

“Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” Thomas Edison 

Trying one more time.

Some days I am happy and eager to do this because I know it will work eventually. Maybe I knew from the outset that it would require several attempts. It is a rare thing that unfolds perfectly the first time.

Some days it’s all I can do not to crumble, not to wind up in a frustrated heap on the floor saying, “Really? Again?” Especially if I feel like I’ve been working through the issue or problem over and over.

I have learned a trick though. I may have to try many times, but if I ask for God’s help, trying becomes a lot easier to do. And often, if I listen, even if that time doesn’t become the last, it goes smoother. I get a new perspective. I remember what most scientists know, failure is still a result. It still provides critical information and makes the next attempt, whether failure or success, much more productive.

I remember another quote from Edison, something to the effect of not failing thousands of times to make a light-bulb, but succeeding thousands of times at learning how not to make a light-bulb.

The glass is not half-full or half-empty, it is full of two different things, liquid and gas.

Or better yet, as my cousin once suggested, “Don’t miss the point, the glass is refillable.”

I will remember today to go to the God of my understanding and ask Him to refill my glass.