I’ve been so busy writing and working lately that I hadn’t taken time out to watch the Olympics. But the other night, I figured I had to make an exception for Michael Phelps’ last race.
He had already made a stunning performance at this year’s games, tying Mark Spitz’s record of seven gold medals in one Olympics. Now he was going for eight. When I came in to watch it, I was expecting to see one great athlete on his quest to make history.
What I didn’t expect was that he would not do it alone.
Phelps’ final race was a relay…and he wasn’t even the last one to swim. His contribution mattered immensely, of course; but his record-setting gold medal depended upon the collective victory of his team. I tried to imagine how he felt, as he watched Cullen Jones, Garrett Weber-Gale, and Jason Lezak compete; and I thought I could understand what might be going through the minds of the others. Especially the one who swam last.
If I had been in Jason Lezak’s place—coming from behind in the final leg of the race—I would have wanted to do everything in my power to succeed.
Which is exactly what he did.
With the help of his team, Michael Phelps got his eighth gold medal. Together, the team set a world record.
Welcome to our blog
Coincidentally, I’m the fourth member of the writing team that is behind this brand-new version of the Kritique Kritics blog. I’m coming from behind—I don’t have anything in print yet, and am way behind my team members in knowledge of writing and publishing. I have so much admiration for Jim, Debra, and Laurie. They are amazing writers, and valued friends.
Each one of us is in a quest for our own “gold medal.” For me, that means the publication of my novel this year. I’m coming from behind—carbon monoxide poisoning set my career back by several years. So when this novel hits print, it will be a personal victory beyond words for me.
Yet, I know one thing for sure:
I won’t do it alone.
Photo: “Golden Rope, a Gleam in the Night” by cobalt123
Tags: Writing, inspiration by mousewords
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