There are so many things I love about Paraguay. However, one thing that drives me up a wall is the absolute lack of persistence I see around me. When it rains and and there's an event planned, no one shows up. Now, if we lived in the country where the mud permitted everyone from getting around, that would be one thing. However, we live in a town with cobblestone roads. But, when a few drops start to fall people run into their houses as if they would melt in the rain. That can get so frustrating after you've worked hard to plan an event or you've invited a special speaker and no one shows up.
People start going to church, but a few weeks later they stop going. Marriages fail constantly due to lack of commitment. In fact, according to the 2000 Guinness Book of World Records, Paraguay has the lowest per capita of marriages of any country in the world. Paraguay, this country that I love so much, is full of people who have quit the race too prematurely.
Norberto was in a two day adventure race this weekend. After day one was through, his team was in fifth place. However, day two was a total turnaround. The first place team ran into a difficulty with navigation. They were all athletes, but were not trained in reading a compass. So, they got terribly lost in the forest--for hours. The third place team couldn't find a mandatory flag. The fourth place team mixed up the flags. The first place team, up until that point, ACTUALLY DROPPED OUT OF THE RACE. They didn't persist. They were so close to winning and they gave up. So, Norberto's team finished second, because they stuck to it!
How many Paraguayans would be successful in their lives, in their marriages and in their work if they would just not give up? How many of us non-Paraguayans could do amazing things if we would have the tenacity, resilience and persistence to keep going, even when the going gets tough?
"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." Thomas Edison
People start going to church, but a few weeks later they stop going. Marriages fail constantly due to lack of commitment. In fact, according to the 2000 Guinness Book of World Records, Paraguay has the lowest per capita of marriages of any country in the world. Paraguay, this country that I love so much, is full of people who have quit the race too prematurely.
Norberto was in a two day adventure race this weekend. After day one was through, his team was in fifth place. However, day two was a total turnaround. The first place team ran into a difficulty with navigation. They were all athletes, but were not trained in reading a compass. So, they got terribly lost in the forest--for hours. The third place team couldn't find a mandatory flag. The fourth place team mixed up the flags. The first place team, up until that point, ACTUALLY DROPPED OUT OF THE RACE. They didn't persist. They were so close to winning and they gave up. So, Norberto's team finished second, because they stuck to it!
How many Paraguayans would be successful in their lives, in their marriages and in their work if they would just not give up? How many of us non-Paraguayans could do amazing things if we would have the tenacity, resilience and persistence to keep going, even when the going gets tough?
"Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." Thomas Edison
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