Inspiration Sometimes Comes Through Failure

Just over a year ago, I learned of an incredible woman, Diana Nyad.  She is known for her marathon titles in OW swimming around the world.  To me, she is so much more.   


As I pondered whether or not I would do an Ironman, Diana was training for her 103 mile swim from Cuba to Florida.  This was a swim she had tried 30 years ago and failed.  She was ready to try it again.  I followed her training and made a strange connection to her.  It was like a connection in the heart.  There was something about Diana, other than the fact that she was a bad ass, that caught my attention.  From what I could see through her blogs, she was down to earth, real, compassionate, and determined.  There was absolutely nothing superficial or fake about this woman. She never boasted or tooted her own horn, but constantly lifted up those around her.  I felt myself drawn to follow her and would silently cheer her on from my computer.  


I took a chance and tweeted her one day that I had signed up for IMTX and was completely worried about finishing the swim.  This was a completely true statement and the fear of not getting out of the water before the time cut off was eating me alive.  My biggest fear was failing.  I didn't want to let anyone down.  I'm not sure what response I expected from Diana.  What I got was something like, "You don't know until you give it a try...Dream!"  Here I was, tweeting this woman that has done so much in her lifetime, swims with Jellyfish, swims in OW at night, and swims for an unimaginable amount of time.  I was going to swim a little 2.4 mile OW swim.  Silly!  Not to Diana.  


It came time for Diana to start her swim.  I was excited for her and followed her FB, Twitter, and website online.  I felt guilty for going to bed that night just knowing she was still swimming!  Diana didn't make the swim.  It's not that she couldn't complete the swim.  There were so many variables she could not control.  I felt crushed for her.  I associated it with how I would feel if I didn't complete the IM.  In the days following Diana's event, I saw how gracefully she accepted the outcome and turned it into something positive.  She truly is an inspiration to me and gave me the calm that I needed to go into my IM knowing there would be several variables I could not control and that failure was a possibility, but not the end.  


After my completion of IMTX, Diana messaged me:


That's incredible, and so inspiring. Congratulations on everything you've achieved. Don't take anything for granted: your successes, your failures. You are in charge of you, and you can either make it or break it. Remember to never give up on yourself. Doing so will lead to inevitable failure. There is so much truth to "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." Never stop dreaming!


Some people follow athletes because their fast, win, have the best record, or have a big name with the media.  I follow Diana Nyad for what she stands for.  Here is a 17 min. video about Diana.  I loved it because it shows how she really is.  Definitely worth watching.  Keep on inspiring Diana!