Don't Reject the Hard

"The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.  What we obtain to cheaply, we esteem too lightly."    -Thomas Paine

None of us would choose to go through rought times if we had a choice.  In fact, if we had it our way, we would choose the life of ease.  Yet, if we studied the lives of heroes of yesteryear or of successful people in the different arenas of life, they would tell the tale of conflict, struggle, and just plain hard work.  They would also say that it was those struggles and conflicts that made the triumph so glorious........so endearing..........so special and So Sweet, to use today's vernacular!  It is true that anything obtained cheaply is cheaply respected.  You see, it is the hard, bumpy road that makes the newly paved road so smooth.  It is the darkness that makes the light so bright.  It is eating beans and rice that makes steak and potatoes so tasty.  Oh friends, don't reject the hard times when they come; embrace them as the tools that will make the times of victory a sweet event.  Remember, it is contrast that accentuates colors.