Aiming for Adequate in an Olympic World

Watching the Olympics is awesome. Those breathtaking moments where we see others push themselves beyond what seem to be the boundaries of possibility and thereby redefining what possibile means, those are awesome.

And watching the winners, often neck and neck with each other, straining every muscle in an attempt to earn that coveted Gold medal, that's somehow incredible to watch too.

But what about those folks who don't medal Gold, Silver or Bronze? Do we just write them off?

Not in my book.

See, in my book, it took a tremendous amount of effort and ability just to be able to be on the field.

Heck, I couldn't even get my butt to London to WATCH these amazing athletes compete. But in terms of "newsworthiness", how many stories do you hear about the folks who stayed together in the middle of the pack? Umm, at least around here, it's a whopping none.

So, my friends, the winners get the glory and the medals and tangible proof of their accomplishments.

And rightfully so.

But it seems to me that each of those athletes that competed, well, they deserve recognition in their own right. Because, let's face it. I'm not going to be one of them. Now, or ever.

I'm okay with just being as athletic as I need to be to be healthy, just as sleep deprived as I have to be in order to get done what needs to get done, just as patient as I have to be to raise my kids, and just as committed as I need to be in order to keep losing weight.

I'm not in a race. If I was, I'd be one of those names at the bottom of the screen that very quickly gets passed over. But this is a lifelong journey for me. It's not about the glory or about being the best.

Sometimes adequate is more than enough.