September 25th – Success

Today I am delving into the ‘piece of my mind’ that has been pondering success.

According to dictionary.com there are multiple definitions for success.

‘the favourable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors ; the accomplishment of one’s goals’

‘the attainment of wealth, position, honors, or the like’

‘a performance or achievements that is marked by success, as the attainment of honors:‘

‘A person or thing that has success, as measured by attainment of goals, wealth, etc.‘

I have issues with these definitions – or issues with success as it is defined. I think there should be a word dedicated to worthy POSITIVE success.

There is nothing admirable in achieving one’s goals, if one’s goal is to be miserable and cause as much misery and grief as one can in a lifetime. Wealth, position, and honors mean nothing if they are ill-gained or used to abuse others. A performance or achievement is meaningless if it destroys peace and harmony. And finally, a person or thing that has success as measured by the attainment of goals or wealth at the detriment of others is no success in my mind.

This morning I browsed through our local paper, as I typically do. There were articles and editorials regarding the latest mis-information and deflection by our miserable Premier. There were the articles and editorials regarding those who refuse and refute any and all health measures to control Covid. And of course… There are the mobs (miserable old bastards) who have to add their miserable comments to each and every article or editorial. None of which defines success as I believe it should be – Not our hapless Premier. Not our ongoing spread of what should be an easily controllable disease in a province where we could easily drive a tractor (sideways) between our residents. Not our miserable bullies who relentlessly push their miserable agenda in every comment section running.

But our paper did have a couple of amazing articles highlighting the admirable achievements of two amazing people. These articles, were in fact death notices, in today’s obituary section.

The first obituary of note was a woman who passed away at the age of 86. (I dealt with her son and daughter during my years in the construction industry – they are good people). She was a devoted wife and dedicated mother. She worked at the local tuberculosis sanitarium and was a strong advocate for her community. She served two terms as a counsellor and two terms as town mayor. She was a founder of the local dance association, President of the Rotary Club, and was an avid bridge player. She loved owls, Canadian thistles, and Liberals. She will be missed by her family and her many friends.

The second obituary of note was a man who passed after a brief and unexpected illness at the age of 97. Over the course of his lifetime he worked for and with his father, served in the RCAF in WWII, operated a successful automobile dealership in Regina and then one in Victoria B.C. He was active with the Shriners. He became a private pilot and a competitive trap shooter. After the passing of his first wife, he remarried and moved to Scottsdale, Arizona where he lived joyfully with his second wife until his passing. He is remembered by his family and by all who knew him as an astute businessman, a long-time Harley rider who rode until he was 93, and an old school gentleman who had a kind word for everyone he met.

These people – they epitomize success for me. They lived good lives serving others. They spread love and goodwill. They celebrated life. They paid the price of hard work and dedication and they reaped the rewards of lives well lived. This is what success should be – or we should have a word for what this is!

That is my ‘piece of mind’ for the day. As always, thank you for listening and feel free to comment in the section below.

Take care and have a great day!💞