Determination

Recently I have been reading a small book entitles 'the words Lincoln lived by' which encompasses everyday wisdom spoken on issues such as honesty, justice, etc. One of these that particular touched a nerve with me was determination. Abraham Lincoln was of the view that no matter your situation in life, you are responsible for who you are and what you become. This point really got to me. As most people who know me will tell you, i aspire to be a pilot in the air-force. It is something I have always wanted to do, and i know within myself it will happen. And i thought, am i able to apply this amount of determination to all aspects of my life? I mean its easy to be determined to want something you've worked your whole life for, but would i be able to be that determined to do my homework every night? or go for a run every morning? or even try to learn a new language, something i have often wanted to try. Determination is a property that is too often cast aside these days, yet another positive quality lumped in with kind, compassionate, things like that. We might often say, "Joe is such a good guy, hes so determined and kind" but are we really listening to what we are saying?

It seems in modern society that we too easily cast words by the way side, never really listening to what people are saying. And so with the thought of determination i have come to two conclusions, both seemingly equally valid in my mind. The one thing that really shines through to me however, is that no matter how hard things are, or where you are, or who you are, as long as you are determined, and believe in yourself, you will prevail.