The many shades of greatness

Okay, so my inspirational reading begs the question: did Diana Nyad make it? Did she swim the distance of 103 miles between Cuba and Florida? The now-obvious and somewhat disappointing answer is, no, she did not. But come on! She made it about halfway, despite massive asthma attacks (she was prepared for some difficulty, but not debilitating) and strong pains in her shoulder which she had never encountered before that day. She fought hard, and in the end, she had to stop.

Am I sad for her? Yes, and no.

I would have loved to see her make a statement to the world about what women in their 60's can achieve with the simple completion of the distance. After all, society wants little sound bites to judge quickly and simply if there was success or failure. So I'm sorry that many will see this as failure. It wasn't, though. The training, the effort, still leave her better off than if she hadn't tried at all. She inspired others, and touched their lives. Now she's helping people take a good hard look at 'success' and hopefully deepen their understanding of it.

And I would have liked to see her do it for her own vindication and joy. I relate to the process she underwent to set the goal, have the courage to make it public, and to go for it all-out. Her spirit is indomitable. I'm sure she cried in frustration when she was in the boat, but her interview afterward demonstrated what a winner she is: an amazingly strong lady mentally, emotionally, and physically, who had the grace and wisdom to appreciate the experience for what it was- team work, hard work and training, and the best her body could offer on that particular day.

My husband made a good point when we were reading her report and watching the interview: she swam 50 miles in the ocean. Fifty. Miles. 24 hours. Really. My hat is off to her. I hope I put up as good a fight in my own life-challenges.