inspirations

 

Good Afternoon. Here is a great thought for the day:

While speaking before a group of students in Cleveland, Ohio, Olympic gold medalist Charley Paddock challenged the audience to think big. "If you think you can, you can," he coached. "If you believe a thing strongly enough, it can come to pass in your life!" Before Paddock concluded his remarks, he lifted his hand and said, "Who knows, there may be an Olympic champion sitting among us." No sooner did he utter those words than a spindly-legged child approached him.

"Mr. Paddock," he said excitedly, "I would give anything if I could be an Olympian just like you." It was the boy's hour of inspiration. From that moment on, his life would change. In 1936 that skinny kid traveled to Berlin and turned in four electrifying performances, capturing gold medals in the process. His name: Jesse Owens.

During a victory tour through the streets of Cleveland, Owens stopped to sign autographs. A tiny child named Harrison Dillard pressed against his car, looked his idol in the face, and said, "Gee Mr. Owens, I'd give anything if I could be an Olympic champion just like you."

Jesse reached out and replied, "You know, that's what I wanted to be when I was a little older than you. If you work and believe, then one day you'll hit your goals."

Twelve years later, at Wembley Stadium in London, England, six sprinters exploded out of the blocks in the 100-meter dash finals. The sprinter in the outside lane burst into the open, drove down, and broke the tape first. His name: Harrison "Bones" Dillard. You say that's a coincidence? You say that it will never happen again? You're wrong. It will happen again and again to the person who captures a vision and backs it with action.

What you can conceive and believe, you can achieve.

Have a
wonderful day.

"Each morning is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When the sun rises tomorrow this day will be gone forever, in its place will be something you have left — may it be something good. Follow your heart, it knows what to do."

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Some of our stories may be excerpts from books published by Simple Truths. Others have been collected over the past 45 years. Enjoy.

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