Going For It
by Steve Goodier
Columnist Dave Barry says this about his father: "My dad ... he'd
try anything -- carpentry, electrical wiring, plumbing, roofing.
From watching him, I learned a lesson that still applies to my
life today: No matter how difficult a task may seem, if you're
not afraid to try it, you can do it. And when you're done, it
will leak." (And then you'll pay somebody even more to fix it
than if you'd called him in the first place.)
But I learned from my parents the value of "going for it."
"Nothing ventured, nothing lost," is the motto of too many of us.
Many people are so afraid to fail that they never venture beyond
the familiar. "Better to be safe than sorry" has trapped too many
unhappy people in the cocoon of their comfort zones.
A delightful story tells that Col. Robert Johnson of Salem, New
Jersey, announced that he would take a public risk. He let the
town know that he would eat a wolf peach on the steps of the
county courthouse at noon on September 26, 1820. "Why would he
take such a chance?" asked bewildered townsfolk.
Scientists and doctors had long proclaimed the wolf peach, also
called the Jerusalem Apple and the Love Apple, as poisonous. Col.
Johnson was warned that he would foam and froth at the mouth. If
the wolf peach was too ripe and warmed by the sun, they told him
he would be exposing himself to brain fever. Should he somehow
survive the experience, the skin of the fruit would stick to the
lining of his stomach and eventually cause cancer.
A crowd of 2,000 friends and neighbors jammed the square to see
Col. Johnson eat the "poisonous" fruit -- a tomato.
Col. Johnson believed his risk was small, but must be taken if
myths about the fruit were to be dispelled. Who has not
accomplished anything worthwhile without taking some chance?
"Behold the turtle," says James Conant. "He makes progress only
when he sticks his neck out."
Steve Goodier Publisher@LifeSupportSystem.com is a professional
speaker, consultant and author of numerous books. Visit his site
for more information, or to sign up for his FREE newsletter of
Life, Love and Laughter at http://LifeSupportSystem.com.