Hold It For One More Second

To become a Helicopter Rescue Swimmer in the US Coast Guard I had to endure some of the most grueling physical training you can find in the military.  A year into my career I was placed in charge of training wannabe Rescue Swimmers at USCG Air Station Clearwater in Clearwater, FL.


I've been told by past trainees that the physical training I put these guys through was harder than what they actually experienced at Rescue Swimmer school.  I'm not sure how true that is, but I do know I prepared them to be mentally strong enough to handle anything they might encounter at school. I was able to clearly communicate that they should never, ever quit and to always 'hang tough' because they would never know when the instructors were going to end the workout.  


The attrition rate at school is more than 50 percent and only about 25 percent of those that begin the entire process of becoming a RS actually graduate.  It is quite common that instructors end workouts immediately after someone DOR's (Drop on Request, quit).  Their point in doing this is to get trainees to understand that they never know when the workout and the pain will end--they need to hold on for as long as they can.  I'm sure hundreds of wannabe RSs were a mere second away from becoming RSs but just couldn't gut it out.


This is true to everyone in life.  You just never know what might happen in the next minute, hour, day, week, month, etc...You might be in a place in life where you hate your job, miss your family, feel lonely or any number of things that could instantly change for the better!


This is especially relevant to me lately.  One minute, one day, one week, one month can make all the difference--hang in there.  


My Dad has a nice mantra:  "Ride the highs and wade through the lows--life is cyclical."