Failure is the stepping stone to success

If I had to write down all the things that I "am" and "have been" the list would go on forever; the past five or so years I've had to completely rewrite a few chapters in the book of "Bridget." I think my character has stayed pretty similar through all the changes, but who I am has sustained a lot of change. Our society pushes productivity on people, we are focused on success and what will we have done by the time we're dead and gone. Will we leave a legacy behind? Will we be that success story people write about? One thing I don't think people realize that can make you a success story is: failure. A lot of times people don't like talking about their failures, because it taints their success story. I think success despite failure is the most amazing part of the story and should definitely be exposed. Here's a story that makes me appreciate the books that I grew up with even more:

J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter novels was waitressing and on public assistance when she was writing the first installment of what would become one of the best selling series in history. The book was rejected by a dozen publishers. The only reason it got published at all was because the CEO's eight year old daughter begged him to publish it.

“Failure meant a stripping away of the inessential.” - J.K. Rowling

Despite the fact that she was rejected time after time, she still made the effort and eventually it paid off and Harry Potter is a story everyone loves, if you haven't read Harry Potter, shame on you. 

Today I went to the Bernalillo County Sheriff's Department 35th cadet class' graduation. It was such an inspiring ceremony; they showed a video of a taste of what the cadet's had been through in the past 23 weeks and you could see in all of their faces how proud they were to have made it. I would love nothing more then to be one of those cadet's graduating and joining the force, but with my physical problem I am currently unable. The key word there is currently, that doesn't mean that someday in the future it's not something I will try. In the mean time, I will do all that I can to better my mind, work hard on other aspects of my life so that when the time does come, I will be ready. There are so many times that we could give up and quit, but once you quit, it's rare that you can go back and try again. By definition, failure means the lack of success. The way I see that is lack of success THIS TIME, it doesn't mean you will never find success again. 

Life is full of trial and error, I tried college for two years and didn't like it; two years later I decided to give it a go again and I'm almost done with my Associates degree in Criminal Justice. I tried competing in figure competitions, learned a lot, but realized it wasn't for me, but I am still passionate about health and people taking care of themselves. Keep trying, don't ever give up on yourself, if things don't work out there may be something around the corner that makes more sense for you. 

I am feeling so encouraged lately, there are a few hurdles on the way to my future, but they are all part of the process. Use your hurdles as a way to propel yourself into success instead of throwing you into a dark hole that you can't get out of. We got this :) 

<3 B