Another tidbit from Uncommon:
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
I’m reading Tony Dungy’s new book, Uncommon. Basically, it’s his perspective on how to live a life of significance…and it’s not about how he coached the winners of Superbowl XLI. This quote should sum it up for you:
“Both (Reverend Billy Graham & Coach Landry) began as ordinary men–submitted and available to God–whom God then used to touch the lives of others. Interestingly, that is often how God works: through ordinary, available people who have submitted their lives to Him. He transforms the common work that we do into something majestic and eternal. Something uncommon.”
It’s so true. God has given each one of us a unique set of experiences and talents that only we can use right now where we’re at. We all have the opportunity to make an ordinary life uncommon.
P.S. – This book is jammed full of good stuff so stay tuned for more quotes.
”Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that every has.”
~Margaret Mead
“You can never be too thin or too blonde.”
~Michelle, my stylist
Would we know that the major chords were sweet,
If there were no minor key?
Would the painter's work be fair to our eyes,
Without shade on land or sea?
Would we know the meaning of happiness,
Would we feel that the day was bright,
If we'd never known what it was to grieve,
Nor gazed on the dark of night?
~Charles Spurgeon
“You know, I think as children we are taught that courage is John Wayne courage. It is loud and it is brash and it wears boots.
But that’s not courage.
Courage is being diagnosed with Parkinson’s and writing chainsaw-juggling jokes about it.
And Richard’s discussion of his diagnosis is, at least to me, a reminder that while life may be unpredictable and unfair, its greatest beauty is in the capacity of the individual to stare into the face of that difficulty and smile.
And make chainsaw jokes.”
~Stephan Pastis, Pearls Before Swine creator
“It isn’t the great big pleasures that count the most; it’s making a great deal out of the little ones.”
~Jean Webster, Daddy-Long-Legs
From the movie Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story:
Lance Armstrong: Could I get a bottle of water. – - Hey, aren’t you Peter La Fleur?
Peter La Fleur: Lance Armstrong!
Lance Armstrong: Yeah, that’s me. But I’m a big fan of yours.
Peter La Fleur: Really?
Lance Armstrong: Yeah, I’ve been watching the dodgeball tournament on the Ocho. ESPN 8. I just can’t get enough of it. But, good luck in the tournament. I’m really pulling for you against those jerks from Globo Gym. I think you better hurry up or you’re gonna be late.
Peter La Fleur: Uh, actually I decided to quit… Lance.
Lance Armstrong: Quit? You know, once I was thinking about quitting when I was diagnosed with brain, lung and testicular cancer, all at the same time. But with the love and support of my friends and family, I got back on the bike and I won the Tour de France five times in a row. But I’m sure you have a good reason to quit. So what are you dying from that’s keeping you from the finals?
Peter La Fleur: Right now it feels a little bit like… shame.
Lance Armstrong: Well, I guess if a person never quit when the going got tough, they wouldn’t anything to regret for the rest of their life. But good luck to you Peter. I’m sure this decision won’t haunt you forever.
To watch, check out this YouTube link.
“If the world had more ubuntu*, we would not have war. We would not have this huge gap between the rich and the poor. You are rich so that you can make up what is lacking for others. You are powerful so that you can help the weak, just as a mother or father helps their children. This is God’s dream.”
~Desmond Tutu, God has a Dream
* Ubuntu is the essence of being a person. It means that we are people through other people. We can not be fully human alone. God keeps trying to make us realize we are made for interdependence, we are made for family.