Your Greatest Achievement

April 5 writing prompt: Your greatest achievement:

My greatest physical achievement is probably the Manitou Incline in Manitou Springs, Colorado. Brian and I did this a couple of summers ago. We scaled 2,744 steps, gaining nearly 2,000 vertical feet in 0.9 miles, with much less oxygen than our flatlander selves are used to. It was, hands down, the hardest I've expended myself physically (other than child birth, but I really didn't have a way to get out of that one 😉) in my entire life. There were multiple moments that I honestly did not know if I'd be able to finish. But I did! 

My greatest professional achievement is becoming a certified sign language interpreter. A decision I made some 40+ years ago, this profession has been the best decision I could have made. A beautiful community of people surround me. The language itself is stunning. It is a privilege I will never take for granted to work with and for the Deaf community and world-class interpreters, both of whom I will forever look up to and continue to learn from.

What do these two things have in common? Years of preparation and commitment. Brian and I didn't just show up at the bottom of that mountain one day and run to the top. We were able to get to the top of The Incline because we have committed ourselves to a healthy lifestyle that continues to strengthen and challenge us, we've read and followed people smarter than us in the areas that interest us, we've adjusted our diets, we've changed our exercise habits. And we've done it for years. I didn't just decide to become an interpreter, take a 10-week class and start interpreting. It took years of education, of surrounding myself with folks in the Deaf community, learning from the best of the best, testing, ongoing education, workshops, reading. And work, work, work. 

Nothing worth having is easy. Pick your thing. Find your mentors. And get to work! The work is worth it.