I can't believe the Olympics start this week. CRAZY AWESOME!!!!
Well...I feel like this is a very fitting quote for this week....
"In 1968 a marathon runner by the name of John Stephen Akhwari represented Tanzania in an international competition. 'A little over an hour after [the winner] had crossed the finish line, John StephenAkhwari . . . approached the stadium, the last man to complete the journey.[Though suffering from fatigue, leg cramps, dehydration, anddisorientation,] a voice called from within to go on, and so he wenton. Afterwards, it was written, "Today we have seen a young Africanrunner who symbolizes the finest in human spirit, a performance that gives meaning to the word courage." For some, the only reward is a personal one. [There are no medals, only] the knowledge that they finished what they set out to do' (The Last African Runner, Olympiad Series). When asked why he would complete a race he could never win, Akhwari replied, 'My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race; my country sent me to finish the race.' "He knew who he was--an athlete representing the country of Tanzania. He knew his purpose--to finish the race. He knew that he had to endure to the finish, so that he could honorably return home to Tanzania. Our mission in life is much the same. We were not sent by Father in Heaven just to be born. We were sent to endure and return to Him with honor." -Sheri Dew
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