"Failure is a better teacher than success."

Success is sweet

My son, although a good soccer player, is no fan of running.  Every time I return from a run he looks at me with total disdain.  *Why* would anyone put herself through this kind of obviously sweaty duress?  One of the talents at which he excels is chess.  Before he ever went to school he would play chess on the computer, since no one else in the family could provide much of a challenge.  One wintry week when he was still in elementary school he asked if I would take him to a chess tournament the upcoming Saturday.  I assumed it was local, and said yes, figuring it would be good for him to find some kids who would provide more of a contest than the home folk did.  I was very sorely dismayed on Friday night when I asked which school I needed to take him to the next morning, and I found out it was the state tournament, on the OTHER side of the state, and we needed to leave at 3:30 in the morning.  UGH!

Not only did I have to take Cam, but I also had to take his younger sister, Julia, who was completely ventilator dependent at that point, as well as on many different medications.  I spent much of the evening preparing.  We were up at 3:30 AM, and we made it to the tournament in time, despite the miserable driving conditions.  I vowed to make absolutely sure I knew all the details before I ever said "yes" again to another request to go to any kid events.

Cam settled in to his first game.  Julia and I settled in to a quiet corner where I could monitor her, her machinery, and any floating germs very closely.  I waited for results.  Cam won his first game!  Everyone congratulated him, and we settled in for the next game.  Amazingly, he won that one too.  The games were getting harder as he was placed against others who also won their first games.  Somehow, though, he won the third game.  And the fourth.  And then, late in the afternoon, he won his fifth.  He won every game he played that day, and rather than leave for the very long drive home, he wanted to stay to receive his trophy.  Julia was tired, and hurting, and I was exhausted from the late night, early driving, and long day of caregiving.  But there was no way I could leave without Cam having his moment of much deserved majesty.

To this day, the memory of what happened next is one of my favorite memories of two decades of being a mother.  Cam was called up to go in front of the crowd, have his photo taken, and receive his award.  He did.  Then he walked back through the audience, and gave his medal to his sister, Julia, who would never be able to win any medals on her own.

I remember telling Cam something he didn't need to know that day, but did need to know plenty of other times as he honed his game and became an even better player. Former World Chess Champion Jose Raul Capablanca said, "You may learn much more from a game you lose than from a game you win. You will have to lose hundreds of games before becoming a good player."  According to a recent University of Colorado study, "Success may be sweeter, but failure is a better teacher."  It was hotter today than it has been for several weeks, and I didn't feel like running, much less trying to beat my recent interval times.  I did run, didn't beat my intervals, but know that I will do better tomorrow.  Any doubts?  Think of Capablanca, and read this excerpt the University of Colorado's press release about how failure leads to success in life.


Até amanhã... 
9/1/11 - 2.0 miles | 19:23 mins | 6.1 mph | 206 kcal