In The Face of Opposition

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Today’s Blog Post


In The Face of Opposition
I have followed the story of Joannie Rochette, the young lady from Quebec and Canada that has risen in her Figure Skating to the place that she is now one of the top in all the World – an Olympian.

Everyone in Canada is aware at this point that Joannie’s mom passed away within a short time of arriving in Vancouver last week. Her mom was coming to witness Joannie’s Olympic competition – the ultimate and highest place her daughter would perform after all those years of endless practice and perfecting her abilities.

The accounts that I have read have been almost overwhelming to say the least. This young lady has done things that no other person has done to arrive at this place in her life – only to have the worst thing ever emotionally happen to her – right before the final stage.

Canada will grant her their “own Gold Medal” for what she has gone through I am sure. The compassion that is felt and offered must be what Joannie needs right now.

We are watching the amazing ability of an athlete being able to rise above the potential defeat and move on. We are seeing her abilities in the Face of Opposition.

No doubt Joannie has not always won everything. For every win she has fallen thousands of times. In order to become the best she has faced...
(1.) opposition of the body not doing what she would like it to do,
(2.) the opposition of her mind wanting to simply give up, and
(3.) the opposition of knowing that there was likely always going to be someone that was better than she was.

That “1.– 2.– 3.” of Opposition Forces simply eliminated all her competition along the way – but it would not stop Joannie.

I have also listened to the stories of other Olympians from Canada that have not done so well. People believed in them and they failed miserably. Some fell down where they never fall down. In a split second their whole life time of practice and perfection fell apart and they went from being SOMETHING – to the next terrible step of being NOTHING… even a disgrace – as the last wall of Opposition overtook them.

Tears followed and writers wrote about their terrible performance… disgracing and letting down their own country. Tisk, tisk tisk!!!!

For years they faced opposition – and from now on they will face it again and again as a failure.

I am amazed at something that takes place in the audience. We celebrate a victory performance when an athlete gets a medal – like it was our own victory. But then when one of the athletes doesn’t do well – we scorn then, reject them, turn from them, leave them – we treat them as rejects.

Can you imagine the range of discouragement and walls of opposition that these failures feel after they fall down – AND DON’T WIN FOR US!??? What a nightmare!

This past week I have met with and encountered three failures in life. All three were people that I respect. All three should have known better – but for whatever reason they simply made bad decisions and fell miserably.

In a very small way they each were ‘olympians’ to other people. If they had succeeded we would have been there to share their glory. But they failed… and many have chosen their own method of dealing with their failure… scorn, rejection, turning and leaving offering our method of treating those that let us down.

In the face of opposition all of us react differently. And we do the same when others face that opposition as well… differently.

AND I am no different. I want to celebrate a Gold Medal – even if I have done nothing to deserve it. But I am just as susceptible to turning in my own discouragement from the other person’s failure…
The answer simple – Get a Grip on your life! Get a grip on encouragement – that ability to shout to the heart of the one that needs it.

I chose to be different and make a difference. And I make that choice again today. I reach out my hand to the athlete that has fallen down… and then when he or she stands up – I wrap my arm around them and whisper, “Now go for the Gold – I believe you can do it!”

~ Murray Lincoln ~
http://www.murraylincoln.com/

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Sources:
Rochette: 'Mom wanted me to have a better life than she had
http://olympics.thestar.com/2010/article/771171--rochette-mom-wanted-me-to-have-a-better-life-than-she-had