Aging with Grace

There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.

Beverly Sills

There are 268 steps to reach the peak of the mountain, where the bronze statue of Buddha sits atop a lotus flower, and no elevator in sight. My son had climbed it once before and said it would take about twenty minutes if we didn’t stop. I didn’t think not stopping was going to be a reasonable goal for me. My plan was just to make it to the top.

Disbursed among the stairs were small landings where we could rest along the way. It was a very temporary respite in a steep climb. It really just prolonged the pain. Upward and onward was my only option, as I saw it. I definitely was not coming this far without achieving my goal to get to the top.

Touching that last step before reaching the crest brought a sense of achievement. Mission accomplished! Life brings lots of challenges. Some are as small as reaching the Big Buddha and some are much larger. Determination to accomplish the challenge can be the extra push we need. Winston Churchill said, “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never, in nothing, great or small”. So much of what we face depends on the will power to see it through.