I dedicate this article to you, T, after I saw you work hard today after a soccer game to run two timed 800 meter runs in preparation for your area track & field meet on Friday.

You had a strategy you were going to try. You wanted to test what you could do.

The first run was hard – harder than you thought it would be, I think. That’s always tough – thinking it’s going to be one way and then it turns out to be harder. You were so tired when you finished, you collapsed on the ground, you asked yourself why did you decide to run this race; you said didn’t want to do it. You lay there for a while. Then you picked yourself up. You evaluated your strategies and tactics.

And then ran the second one.

And you beat your first time by 11 seconds.

That’s significant. I know. I ran track for years. That was my event. 11 seconds is a lot for a second run. Effort, girl, you put in effort.

I saw you do the hard work to be the best you can be for that meet. That shows character, T. That ability to persevere when it’s tough and you want to give up. Even when you could have easily taken the easy way out by simply not doing it, you “muscled” through to work to be the best you could be.

That’s the edge. Tackling the difficult zone is where you grow. That ability to withstand the discomfort, to tap into your courage: it will serve you very well in life regardless of whatever life throws at you or you decide to pursue.

It may seem pointless – running, what’s the point of that? Or a pointless game – who cares – are we saving lives? But it’s actually more. It challenges us on so many levels. And that’s why we do it.

Sometimes we work hard for the hope of glory, that hope of winning, of being recognized as being the best, or because we want to beat someone who wronged us or prove something to someone who doubted us. Whatever it takes to motivate you. That’s good, that works.

But what I think you discovered is that when you recovered, you felt pretty darn good about yourself for the effort you made. Without any of that glory.

That’s the thing about working hard for a goal we recognize as being admirable. When it’s painful, difficult, uncomfortable and you persevere for the right reasons, there are these hidden payoffs. We become strengthened. Fortified. Buoyant. It’s like it’s built into us to recognize when we’ve done right without anyone else recognizing it. The more we do it, the more we become immunized from self-doubt and self-recrimination because we know did the difficult thing for the right reason. We can do it.

And honestly? Not everyone can.

We can believe in ourselves because experience has taught that when it’s tough we show up. We can do the hard work and be good to ourselves. We are warriors.

That’s what you and me and M are and what your dad was. We are warriors.

I am super proud of you. Xoxo