Hi Son,
How are things going there today? Again, I know I’ll sound like a broken record, but I certainly hope that all is well.
I’m sitting here chuckling when I think of the phrase, “I sound like a broken record”. Merriam-Webster gives the meaning as, “used to say that someone keeps saying the same thing over and over again”. In reality, if a record is truly broken, especially into pieces, it would make no sound at all.
Here’s another saying that I have always found interesting, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” – Norman Vincent Peale.
Let’s take a closer look at that quote. The Moon is ~ 239,000 miles from Earth. The closest star to the Moon and the Earth is our Sun which is ~ 93 million miles away. The next nearest star is Proxima Centauri, which is ~25,300,000,000,000 miles away. So, factually, shooting for the Moon and missing won’t get you anywhere near the stars, not even our own Sun.
Isn’t it amazing how quickly facts could drain all the fun out of fiction? Even though the quote is factually inaccurate, it is emotionally uplifting. Why? Because when you set a goal and miss, you will in all likelihood be in a place better than if you had not reached for the goal at all.
It feels as if the, “stars” in Norman Vincent Peale’s quote could be any number of positive attributes. For instance, when you set a goal and miss that goal, you are by no means empty-handed at the point. There are several ways we can look at this:
Why did I miss my goal? – This gives us an opportunity to reevaluate our approach.
What can I learn from the experience of missing my goal? – This gives us information we can use to increase the probability of a positive future outcome.
Each attempt we make to reach a goal may not seem as if it will yield a positive outcome. We can count on the “stars” as the lessons we learn from each attempt to move us closer to our desired goal.
Well, that’s all for now!
Have an amazing day and know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!
Love,
Dad