Don't give up...on life or your dreams

Don’t give up, on life or your dreams
There is a part in the movie “Tin Cup” where Kevin Costner’s character refuses to quit.
Professional golfer Roy McAvoy is on the 18th fairway in the final round of the U.S. Open, trying to clear the ominous water hazard separating him from the green.
His first ball falls well short of the green, splashing into the water. So does the second. The third. And the fourth shot. All the while, the entire gallery, the players and even McAvoy’s caddy are gasping at the futility of his efforts.
But not Roy.
With each failed attempt, he places a new ball on the spot and hits it with even more determination than the first.
Until finally, after several failed attempts, McAvoy’s ball clears the water and rolls into the cup.
And even though he didn’t win the Open, McAvoy had proven a point: Don’t give up. Keep trying.
Of course, there was a scene in the movie were McAvoy was ready to throw in the towel. Yet he was reminded of his dream and all that it had taken to get so close to it.
It’s easy to let long odds or repeated failures rule out our dreams. Just ask Rudy Ruettiger, the undersized and over-tenacious dreamer who ended up outlasting some of America’s most highly touted athletes to make the best college football team in the country.
Not only did he lack the physical prowess to play at Notre Dame, but Ruettiger also did not have the grades to gain entry into one of the nation’s most prestigious private universities.
As a result, many of Ruettiger’s contemporaries doubted him. His dream was just a dream and nothing more.
But Rudy was determined to prove everyone—including himself—wrong. Yes, even Rudy struggled with doubt.
He spent two years diving headlong into his studies at Holy Cross Junior College in an effort to qualify for admission to Notre Dame.
He was turned down every semester leading up to his final one of eligibility when he finally achieved acceptance.
Once there, the going got tougher for Rudy. He had to work extra hard and endure a high degree of ridicule just to win a spot on the football practice squad. He then took a tremendous physical beating from the varsity players against who he scrimmaged.
But no matter how many times Rudy got knocked down, he’d rise right back up on his feet to take yet another hit. He had collected two years’ worth of cuts and bruises just for an opportunity to suit up for one game.
Finally, Rudy had earned a spot on the team during its last home game of the 1974 season. In 1992, a movie was made in tribute to Rudy’s spirited achievement.
Everyone has a dream, no matter how far-fetched it may seem. But it’s up to each of us to decide how badly we want it.
As a kid, I had a dream to author my own comic strip to appear alongside Charles Schulz’s “Peanuts” and Jim Davis’ “Garfield.” But I let all of the little details in life get in the way of pursuing this dream. If it wasn’t college, then it was trying to land my first full-time job. If it wasn’t work, then it was graduate school. And if it wasn’t graduate school, then it was changing careers or the pursuit of a promotion.
I even used my growing family as reason enough not to pursue my dream.
Well, now I find myself in a place in life where the only doors that seem to be open to me at this time are related to my cartoon art and developing a comic strip. This occurred after a diagnosis that left me disabled and out of work. I have been unsuccessful in all other work-related pursuits outside of my artwork.
Right now, that is what is driving me. My dream is back, alive, well and thriving. I realized how much time I wasted with one excuse after another, and one reason after another for not chasing the dream that used to motivate me when I was younger.
Now the fire is back, and there is no greater satisfaction than chasing a dream with all the vigor of youth long past.
After more than 20 years of letting life’s little details distract me from a goal I set before even starting puberty, I am back on track. God willing, I will stay the course this time around. I don’t want any regrets. I don’t want to look back twenty years from now and wish that I coulda, shoulda or woulda done something different.
Perhaps the best thing about resurrecting my dream at this stage in life is that I am mature enough to understand and accept that failure is going to be part of the chase. It will test my determination and my resolve. A much younger me might have gotten discouraged and given up after the first couple of rejections.
No dream has ever been realized without a substantial amount of work, sacrifice, and disappointment. It doesn’t take much to dream. However, much effort is required to make it come true.
But if I can do it at a stage in life when most people are unwilling to change careers and take these kinds of risks, then so can anyone else with the drive and determination to chase a dream again.
Don’t be afraid to dream. Furthermore, don’t be afraid to fail. For dreams only die when we stop chasing them.

Brett Fisher is a writer and cartoonist who lives in Carson City. He and his wife, Lisa, have resided in the state capital for over seven years.