Winning isn’t everything. It’s the only thing.
Vince Lombardi
I don’t think I could live my life following that mantra. Vince Lombardi was a football coach and player and maybe it worked for him. But there are different ways of winning.
At the Christmas party, at Belinda Trusell’s Oakcrest Farm, Belinda spoke about her ride at WEG ( World Equestrian Games). She told us that for her it was the best Grand Prix ride she had ever had on her horse Tattoo. She felt he gave her a winning ride. She did not mean their score would win the gold medal. She did not mean it was their best score ever. She meant that Tattoo had given her everything he could on that day. He had gone out there and done his very best. ” It was a different way of winning,”Belinda said.
A ‘different way of winning’ struck a real chord with me. Getting a horse and rider qualified for their nation’s team for a major Championship like the Olympics or World Games is a huge endeavor. Two athletes must be at peak fitness both mentally and physically. So to get into the ring and have your horse absolutely on your side, giving you his all, that is a win. That is winning. Here is another quote that is a different kind of winning.
“I think my greatest victory was every time I walked out there, I gave it everything I had. I left everything out there. That’s what I’m most proud of.”
Jimmy Connors
That is what Belinda and Tattoo did at WEG. Tattoo went out there and gave it everything he had. He left everything out there. That is a different way of winning.
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