wise words from tr

Time to clear the cobwebs from this thing...

Been talking to a friend from my old stomping grounds of Little Rock recently about some decisions I'm faced with. You know, the ones where it's clear what ought to be done but for several reasons you don't want to do it and hold out with the hope that things will just magically work out if you do nothing. And, of course, they never do. But our friend Theodore Roosevelt had a bit to say about such situations. To paraphrase his words, it's better to try and fail than not try at all. Very true too, in any area of life. I'm curious to know what he was referring to here. Whatever it was, this part of the speech is so good it's worth memorizing.

It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of the deed could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by dust, sweat, and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again...because there is no effort without error and shortcoming.

It is the man who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasm; the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement...and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.