Stick to your task

Perseverance, stick-to-it-iveness, endurance; these are all words that make me want to die a little inside. I am of the opinion that there is nothing more difficult in this life than sticking to something worthwhile. Starting is easy, thinking and dreaming about it is a breeze, but actually staying with it long enough to make it mean anything, golly it's hard. I can't tell you how many times I've started something with really lofty goals and expectations only to lose steam after a few weeks and giving in to laziness. Whether it's been an exercise regimen, getting up at a certain hour, controlling some bad habit, whatever it is, I would guess, based entirely on my gut feeling, that I've given up on some 80% of all endeavors I've ever embarked on.

One of the most haunting statements I've ever heard (haunting because it struck so close to home) was made by then Elder Gordon B. Hinckley in the April 1975 General Conference when he said, "One of the great tragedies we witness almost daily is the tragedy of men of high aim and low achievement. Their motives are noble. Their proclaimed ambition is praiseworthy. Their capacity is great. But their discipline is weak. They succumb to indolence. Appetite robs them of will."

Now, I'm an endurance runner (not a very good one, so don't ask me about my times or distances, please?), and so I'm acquainted with the pain that accompanies a long run. If you're running hard, there's a point or period (or maybe just the entirety) of a race where you simply wish you could die. It's no longer fun, you hurt, you can barely breathe, you're starting to cramp, and you wish it were over. All you can do is try to impose your mind's will over your body's will. I suppose that the same stages occur in any long term deal. There will come a point that you just don't want to do it anymore, it's easier to quit, and frankly no one would blame you for doing so. The fun has gone out of it, and it becomes tedious, menial, and just plain hard. When you get to that point, I hope the following poem may be of use to you. My wise father made me memorize this poem when he coached me in basketball as a kid, and I've never forgotten it.

Stick to your task, 'til it sticks to you.
Beginners are many, but enders are few.
Honor, power, place, and praise,
Will come, in time, to the person who stays.

Stick to your task, 'til it sticks to you.
Bend at it, sweat at it, and smile at it too.
For out of the bend and the sweat and the smile,
Will come life's victories, after a while.
                                   -Anonymous