Our Greatest Glory Is Not In Never Falling, But In Rising Every Time We Fall. (Confucius)

A dragon rising over a tiger
A mythical dragon sparring with a tiger.

Our greatest glory as human beings is not in never falling because whether we fall does not always depend on ourselves. As human beings, we are limited in some measure by our genetics, our environment, and the actions of other people. Sylvester Stallone starring as Rocky Balboa said it best.

The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done! Now if you know what you’re worth, then go out and get what you’re worth, but you gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you! You’re better than that!

King Solomon arrived at a similar conclusion.

For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.

Proverbs 24:16

It’s not the walk-off home run nor the game-winning shot nor the go-ahead touchdown that best showcases the human spirit. The human spirit lies in overcoming adversity. Resilience, evidently, separates winners from losers; the happy from the miserable; and the righteous from the unrighteous.

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