Wisdom from Confusius

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.” This Confusian quote certainly challenges the typical understanding of failure in our society.  My fiancee and I stumbled upon it while shopping for some pictures to hang in my new house.  There were a few of these pictures to choose from, all containing the quote with Buddha as the background image. I thought it was perfect because of the way in which she and I have learned to handle defeat, simply, by picking ourselves up off the ground when we fall, dusting ourselves off and chugging on in this game we call ‘life’. Well, we were about to purchase one and then noted where they’d been manufactured–China. Let’s put it this way: Either they were roughed up by shipping or store clerks stocking, or they were just thrown quickly together, as some foreign products seem to be these days. Whatever the case, it left me somewhat frustrated because I really wanted the picture to hang in my office; we left the store disappointed. A few days later my fiance had a surprise for me–she had purchased all the materials she needed to create a similar picture (but one that took time and love to make). She bought stones, bamboo, printed out this image of Confusius himself for the background, stickers for the word “strength” down the side and cut out lettering for the quote. I could not have done this! I was so impressed! I am certainly blessed to have such an amazing person with whom I will journey in this life. And now, I have this picture hanging in my office to be reminded of this quote, especially when I fall or when we fall together.