The Sandbag Times Issue No: 42

Issue 42_riskuk_jan16 04/04/2018 17:10 Page 23
HAVE FAITH
Try and Try Again..
If courage is grace under pressure, perseverance is its cousin.
Perseverance is the virtue of trying again, and then trying
again, and again, until we achieve our goal.
Nothing great was ever accomplished without perseverance.
Some people have marvelous natural gifts and are capable of
wonderful things. But they lack staying power. When they
meet something that doesn't come easily to them they lack the
patience to master it. They are outdone by people who will
carefully and painfully devote themselves to learning the skill
they need.
very difficult, full of rejections, lots of frustration and our
patience has been stretched to the limit. Finally, we did it.
We finally got our local councils to listen and dip in to their
funds to support the great work the staff at the centre are
doing. But there was many times when we wanted to throw
the towel in and give up. Those moments never lasted too
long but we did truly feel tested.
One thing that kept driving me forward was the thought of
what state I was in a few years ago. The thought that I would
be giving up on people in the same position was too strong. I
couldn’t let people down.
Maybe there is a moral to that story in finding a reason to go
on. Not rocket science but if, when life is getting on top of
you, you can remember how life was like, good or bad and
use that to drive forward.
If life was good, try to reach it again. Try to remember there is
an end to everything, including bad times. Just keep trying.
If times were bad then try to imagine just how experienced in
life you are and how you can use your experiences to help
others. This magazine and the Tommy Atkins Centre have
been created on this premis alone.
People who persevere aren't always the ones who make the
headlines. They don't necessarily shine and glitter. But they
have worth, because they know what's of value in this world
and they're prepared to work for it.
Most of all, just remember however hard life is, or however
hard your challenge is just keep trying and you will succeed.
If you still haven’t succeeded, maybe the time just hasn’t been
right or you haven’t been ready to succeed. But it will come,
Just keep trying and don’t give up.
Perseverance is a Christian virtue. The apostle Paul writes
about it: he was tempted to give up his missionary work
because it was so hard, but he kept going. Without his
perseverance, you would not be reading this.
As veterans, it is quite often the case where we feel like giving
up. We no longer have the strength to continue fighting. But
thankfully, for the very large majority, they find that bit of
soldier/ airman or sailor deep down inside that manages to
bring forward the surivial instinct.
Just recently, I, or should I say we, have been challenged to
find money to keep the Veteran Centre open. It has been
www.sandbagtimes.co.uk 23 |