Enjoy life and never give up as good things are happening

      Graduations at most high schools, colleges, tech schools, junior colleges and other learning institutions are in the books for 2023.
        Congratulations!
        The world is a better place because of you.
        You are valuable and have purpose on this earth.
        I hope that soaks down in your heart as you plan for your future in whatever direction you decide. It may be selecting a college or choosing a career or new job or who you will date and marry.
        Life is full of challenges and also failures.
        Many of the victories I have had in my life have come with a few failures along the way.
      When I returned to college at the University of Missouri-Columbia in my early 30s, I faced a myriad of challenges.
       I was a non-traditional student and my goal was to get into journalism school. I had barely passed high school English some 15 years earlier.
       Math was also not one of my strong points. I took a pre-college math test when I arrived in Columbia and the folks at the testing center encouraged me to return to high school.
       I had previously dropped out of college algebra twice when I was encouraged by the math department to take a non-credit pre-algebra course at MU to prepare more for the main course.
      I found a tutor to help me and I attended algebra tutoring courses through the math department a couple days a week.
     After finals in pre-algebra, I ended up with a “D” in the course. I needed a “C” to move on to college algebra. At the end of that school year, sometime around 1994, I paid a visit to the MU math department chair.
        I explained my situation and asked if there was anything I could do that summer to bring my grade up to a “C” so I could move on.
       “No,” the math chair said. “But let me talk to your instructor and see if we might have made a mistake on scoring your final.”
        A door of opportunity had just opened and I was about ready to walk inside.
        “What do I do?” I asked the math chair.
        “You stop at 11 a.m. next Tuesday and we will talk,” she said.
        My heart was about to jump out of my chest as I am thanking God for this open door.
         I was facing a set back and this door of opportunity was actually a set up for good things.
         Tuesday came and I showed up at the math chair’s office in the math building right on time.
         I knocked and no one said a thing.
         I knocked again and no one said anything.
         I could hear someone in the office, so I knocked again.
        This time, the math chair opened the door and wasted no time in telling me that a mistake in my test had been found and that I had passed the course.
        “You are going to have to work hard in algebra 10,” she told me as a big smile came across my face.
        Looking back, I don’t know if the math chair found a mistake or not. What matters is I never gave up and a door opened. I went on to take algebra 10 for credit and passed with a “C.” It took hours and hours of tutoring and working math problems to get it done.
        No matter the challenges you will face in life, here is my advice:
        Don’t sweat the small stuff.
        Keep on walking, no matter the outcome.
        Don’t doubt, just believe, even when facing a failure.
        Asking for help is not a weakness, but a strength.
        Failing a test doesn’t make you a failure, get up and try it again.
        See the positives in everything you do in life.
        Focus on your dreams and goals and keep chipping away at them.
        Hang around people who believe in you and encourage you to find ways to overcome obstacles.
        Doing for others is always a good thing.
        And the most important, show up on time.
        Have a great week and always remember that “Good Things are Happening,” every day and always.