SL Life Lessons: “Pain is temporary, victory is forever.”

I recently participated in a 75-flight, 1,664-stair tower climb at the US Bank Tower in Los Angeles. As I reached the thirtieth floor, I could feel a burning sensation in my thighs. The burning sensation was partly caused by the first thirty flights of the stair climb and partly by a running event of which I participated just days before without allowing the proper amount of time for my body to recover. My first thought was ‘ dude, your thighs feel like they are on fire…you should have taken a week off before this climb. But we are here now, so push through…’ As I continued to climb the stairs, I noticed a climber bent over in the stair way with his hands resting on his thighs. As I began to pass him, I noticed that he was exiting the stairway, heading toward the elevator to return to the lobby. Despite my own pain I kept climbing, making sure not to look at the flight numbers posted on the stairway wall. I thought to my self ‘ If I look at the flight numbers and I’m further away than I expect, I’m done. Don’t look up until you reach the top…” As I continued to climb, the burning sensation became more intense. ‘Just don’t stop…’ I thought to myself.

Suddenly, I could hear cheers in the distance and see a beam of sunlight that touched the stairway steps. As I ran up the final flight of stairs, I was greeted by radiant sunlight and the dazzling smiles of event volunteers. “Great job…” one volunteer said as he hung the tower climb medal around my neck. Another volunteer greeted me. “You did it!” she said as she gave me a “high-five”. As I walked across the rooftop gazing at the picturesque California mountains, I felt a palpable sense of accomplishment. I also noticed that the pain had dissipated.

In life, there are times when we are going to experience pain while pursuing our dreams. We must put our proverbial head down and push through the pain to attain our goals. Devon Walker, a former Tulane football player paralyzed during a game, said it best when he told his teammates “Pain is temporary, victory is forever.”