Refusing to Accept Failure

Sir Edmund Hillary was the first man to climb Mount
Everest. On May 29, 1953
he scaled the highest mountain then known to
man-29,000 feet straight up. He was knighted for his
efforts. He even made American Express card
commercials
because of it! However, until we read his book, High
Adventure, we don't
understand that Hillary had to grow into this success.
You see, in 1952 he attempted to climb Mount Everest,
but failed. A few weeks later a group in England asked
him to address its members.

Hillary walked on stage to a thunderous applause. The
audience was recognizing an
attempt at greatness, but Edmund Hillary saw himself
as a failure. He moved away
from the microphone and walked to the edge of the
platform. He made a fist and pointed
at a picture of the mountain. He said in a loud voice,
"Mount Everest, you beat me the
first time, but I'll beat you the next time because
you've grown all you are going to grow...
but I'm still growing!"

Brian Cavanaugh, T.O.R.
"The Sower's Seeds"