If you were not one of the millions of people to watch it live, by now you’ve surely seen a video of it. No, not the presidential debate – Felix Baumgartner’s triple record-breaking feat: Jumping from the stratosphere and landing safely, on his feet, back on earth.
The supersonic skydive drew lots of attention but you probably don’t know about the setbacks that had to be overcome. There were legal challenges and weather problems. The capsule that was to take Felix up was damaged during a test run. Baumgartner initially struggled with claustrophobia after spending time in the pressurized suit required for the jump. Overcoming all these challenges (and many more), this past Sunday Felix Baumgartner finally achieved his goal.
It is timely that this took place during the week that we read the story of Noach. Noach's personal story is often overshadowed by the flood. When Noach left the ark, the Torah describes him as “alone”. The Midrash says that he was also physically ill, “broken and spitting blood”. Immediately following his experience with the flood, the Torah describes his unfortunate encounter with alcohol. He seemed down and out. But he was charged by G-d to rebuild the world… and he succeeded.
Our goals may not be as glamorous as the ones mentioned above but in our personal lives they are of utmost importance. We will suffer setbacks and we will be disheartened, but we can’t allow it to distract us from our goal.
The difference between success and failure is patience and persistence. With patience and persistence we can – and will – achieve any goal.