If you’re headed for the top, the pleasure of going by stairway will outlast that of a fast elevator ride.
Dr. David Myers
Usually, we like to offer some biographical information on the source for the day’s Thought, but we are unable to do so in this instance because we did not note the book we stole this passage from. Also, based in its position in our quotebook, whatever book it was in was read prior to June 1995 so we can forget about having it at the top of our head. We did some research but there’s no shortage of Dr Myerses that write books. We looked at the titles of some of them, but nothing rang a bell. So the best we can offer is one Dr David Myers wrote a passage that we thought worth writing down.
If you’re headed for the top…
We should all be headed for the top…One, the challenge of trying makes life worth living. Two, what good is aiming for second place?
It’s important to note that the top does not necessarily mean fame and fortune and living down the ages. It might, but that is not for everybody. It merely means getting the most out of the talents you were issued at birth and taking advantage of what nature and circumstance put in front of you. When we do that, our path will take us where we are meant to go.
…the pleasure of going by stairway will outlast that of a fast elevator ride.
Those who get on this world have patience. Life is a series of cycles and we must be aware of when one ends and another begins.
Our own personal example is sports officiating. We had an accomplished and rewarding high school officiating career and while we are not officially retired, we don’t do a whole lot of it anymore. There comes a time when you have become about as good as you are going to get at something and you’ve accomplished all you care to and when that happens our experience is it is generally best to leave with those good memories.
Cycles vary, and we can be in the middle of more than one at any given time. The important thing is to be open to its entire length. Some cycles might last only a few years, some may last many years and some may not end until you die. That’s OK. We must be open to all of them because cycles lead to our path and we must have the patience to see our path through the very end.
The Thought for the Day runs regularly. Gaylon began stockpiling quotes in 1988.
