[important]This post is part of The Write On Project [/important]
Topic: Crash and Burn
What on earth is crash and burn? And more importantly, what does it mean to me?
To be honest, nothing springs to mind. But I did what I always do when I draw a blank – I Google it.
According to the Urban Dictionary, the phrase “crash and burn” means to “have a spectacular failure or fall from grace”, and its mention is often accompanied by hand gestures mimicking a plane crashing and burning.
……. Again – a blank!
It’s inconceivable to be experiencing the tail-end of my 4th decade, without crashing and burning. Or is it? Could my failure be – to have never failed? Surely something as momentous as a fall from grace would be etched on the forefront on my mind, and could be recalled and recounted at the drop of a hat? And yet – I draw a blank.
I troll my memory banks for inspiration.
King Edward & Bill Clinton
King Edward, (the royal, not the potato) fell head-over-heels in love with Mrs. Simpson, and then fell from grace when he abdicated the British Throne. Bill Clinton fell from grace, over a misrepresentation of the truth; an intern; and a dress in dire need of a scrub. These were both spectacular falls from grace and resulted in changing the course of history.
Inspiration Strikes
I’ve never changed the course of history, so once again I revert to my old friend Google, and feed it ”Failure Quotes”.
Henry Ford said that “Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”
At last! – Inspiration Strikes….. Failures are our life lessons.
Bumpy Ride or Smooth Sailing?
On life’s journey, would you like a bumpy ride or do you prefer smooth sailing? Some might attest that failures cause the bumpy ride, but I believe they actually result in smooth sailing.
At the beginning of our journey, we’re unshaped blocks of marble and failures are the chisels that shape us. Without failure, we’re cumbersome objects getting knocked off-balance by the obstacles that stand in our way. But each failure we survive sculpts our edges, and we become more aerodynamic and agile.
So rather than a failure resulting in a crash and burn, it’s more likely to result in our ability to successfully navigate whatever challenges life throws our way, with ease.
I’ve undoubtedly had failures, but none I’d class as spectacular. When they happened, they maybe felt that way, but time and distance have diluted their impact. Now I no longer view them as failures, instead they’ve progressed, with a knock of the chisel into ”life lessons”. I’m thankful for their existence, because they’ve moulded my experience and shaped my evolution.
So, what does crash and burn mean to me? Let it Go. Look on the bright side. Live and Learn. Move On. Grin and bear it. Power through it. The show must go on. Put your game face on. Nothing you can’t handle. Be unstoppable.
Be defined by your chisel marks. Strike a pose; embrace your failures; and fall from grace. Would you rather be a Sculpture or a Block of Marble?
Crash and Burn image from the orangejuiceblog.com
