Have you ever had a mountaintop experience — something so inspiring, so uplifting, so affirming, that you just wish you could stay in that moment forever?
Or, by contrast, have you experienced valleys in your life that are so deep you wonder if you will ever come out of them?
I suspect you have. I certainly have experienced both, and have experienced the wish that the mountaintop would continue, as well as the feeling that the valley will never end.
There are times when we all get discouraged — either by circumstances in our personal lives; or in the long slog for writers to find an agent, and to get published; or by the conditions in society around us.
For both mountaintop and valley, there are some words of wisdom that can encourage us and help us remember that these things are just steps on the longer journey, that the journey continues, and that ultimately the journey is worth whatever mountains or valleys there might be.
My grandmother used to use the phrase “keep on keeping on” frequently. (She also told me over and over to persevere — I still hear that word in my mind in her Scottish accent.)
My mother used to sing the first line of an old Harry Lauder song: “Keep right on to the end of the road, keep right on to the end…”
No matter what we are involved in, we have highs and lows, but those don’t define us nor do they define the process. They are moments in the journey, however joyous or sorrowful or fear-filled, and we acknowledge them, express the feelings, but we keep right on on the longer journey. The journey is worth it. We are worth it. I am saying this to myself as much to everyone else.
K is for “Keep right on.” This isn’t the end of the road. Keep on keeping on. And here’s an old, scratchy recording of Harry Lauder to accompany you on your journey. (Doesn’t this K look as though it’s marching?)
Come back later today for a bonus post — I’ve recently read a delightful “K” picture book that I want to share with you.
I have had an inspiring moment after prayer when I was really down. I felt God telling me ‘I delight in you!” I really felt joy after terrible worrying sadness. This happened in 2009 and I still remember the way those words lifted me. I have since found them in Zephaniah 3:17
How incredibly encouraging! Thank you for sharing that experience.
Oh dear, The ‘d’ of down did not come out in the first sentence” when I was really down” Can you change it, please?
Done! (Mistakes happen.)
Great post and encouraging words. Do you have blogs elsewhere?
Thank you, Lynda. Yes, I have a blog that focuses on middle grade books and the arts, called The Starborn Revue, at http://www.elizabethstarborn.com and an editing and writing tips blog on my editing website, http://www.flubs2fixes.com
Great post!
Thanks, Erik!