Getting Up

After getting the stuffing (OK, I had another word there but this is a family blog) kicked out of him by Sugar Ray Robinson, Robert DeNiro‘s Jake LaMotta character looks him in the eye and says “You didn’t get me down, Ray. You didn’t get me down.” He may have been spitting blood but he wasn’t down. More importantly, although he was hanging on the ropes, he got back up.  You watch that scene from Raging Bull and you wonder – how does any boxer get up after getting beaten to a pulp? I wonder that sometimes as well but not about boxers.
I’m sure you’ve heard as many horror stories as have I this past year or so. People who have long lists of accomplishments can’t find work. People who have good jobs can’t make their monthly nut because a spouse lost a job or their business has fallen off. Watch the news any night – how do people get back up?

This is the time of year when people get depressed. I’m not a psychologist so I won’t get into why that might be.  What I do know is that it’s easy to focus on what’s missing in your life now, whether it’s material things or family or work. The trick is to focus on what you do have, unsatisfying as it may be on the surface.  Health?  A friend or two?  It’s a place to start, and once that list is started you’ll be shocked how fast it grows as you think about it.

The trick isn’t to fall – it’s to get up.  Floyd Paterson’s great quote – “They said I was the fighter who got knocked down the most, but I also got up the most” – is what I mean.  And if you’re on your feet, how about helping someone get back up?  After, ’tis the season!