a lesson in snowboarding

i have come to realize several parallels between learning snowboarding & the daily occurances of life .

1 - no pain no gain
this has to be the most obvious lesson of all . i fell a lot , everybody falls a lot when they first start to learn , and i knew that - but i didnt know it would hurt so much ! like coldplay says 'nobody said it would be easy , nobody said it would be this hard' , i knew learning wouldnt be easy - but i didnt know i would have to go through pain that forces tears into my eyes . but falling and hurting is all part of the process . everybody has to fall in order to see their mistakes , and the pain that goes with it makes the feeling of actually getting the hang of it that much more liberating . the application of this extends into so many things - primarily school i think . it can be painful now - only in the sense that i have to do things that i dont want to do , and not do things i want to do , etc & the reward of working hard will be great .

2 - fear is your worst enemy
reminds me of that hilary duff movie - "never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game". the more scared you are , the more likely you are to fall , and also the slower you will learn . the best thing you can do it be daring & take chances , and if you fail (or fall in the case of snowboarding) , just get back up again . you'll never learn by always treading in shallow waters .
"what would you do if you knew you could not fail"

3 - perseverance is your greatest asset
never ever give up on anything , no matter how scary or painful or daunting it may be . as long as it serves a righteous purpose , it is worth it . the will to persevere for snowboarding was simply the mentality of "i need to do better" / "i want to learn  faster" / "mind over matter" , but i think its different when used in the context of everyday life . James 5:11 - As you know , we consider blessed those who have perseved . and from Romans we know that perseverance stems from suffering . and from Philippians we know we are to suffer to Christ's sake . no wonder perseverance is a blessing ! a great reminder to keep fighting the good fight .