Image Credit: AZ Quotes
When I was sixteen, I took drivers’ education in high school. I remember my road instructor, Coach Ronnie Cornick, using a phrase whenever we’d be at a light and the person in front of us didn’t take off quick enough, or when I was too tentative to pull into the flow of traffic, or when any opportunity to be a part of the steady flow of traffic wasn’t taken full advantage of. Coach Cornick would always say: fortune favors the bold… usually barked at me, or out the window at another driver.
What sixteen year old me took away from those teachable moments was the lesson: waiting on the blessings of fortune (opportunity) will cause you to accomplish nothing but waiting.
Fortis Fortuna Adiuvat: latin for “Fortune favors the bold”... mostly.
Literally, it’s more like “The goddess Fortuna helps those who are strong.”
(Latin scholars: please refrain from pontificating on my post. Start your own blog and write about Rev. Badger's shitty latin translations. Like the title says... MAKE YOUR OWN)
If we’re doing our part, and that part usually requires a LOT more work than we originally planned for, Fortuna will help us… because the truth of the matter is this:
Fortune only nudges things a degree or two.
The rest is entirely up to us. See, if we weren’t already doing the work, those couple degrees wouldn’t make an ounce of difference, but if we’re working our asses off, that little bump could make all the difference in the world.
This understanding is reflected in how I engage in a pious life. People are usually surprised at how little I pray for myself and my family. I tell them my energy is better spent doing the physical work to accomplish goals, helping my family grow confident and strong... and not by throwing offerings and words into the void, especially when I’m not doing my part.
I tend to make a lot more gratitude offerings. Gratitude for the strength, fortitude, and perseverance it took to achieve our goals.
After all, this isn’t Christianity. This isn’t a vending machine of divine favors. Frankly, that's not what I want my religious experience to be.
It’s work. Good, old fashion, hard work.
Once the work piece is done, the real blessing is seeing how the fortune we’ve been blessed with doesn’t come from beyond ourselves… it comes from within.
(See y’all tomorrow)
What sixteen year old me took away from those teachable moments was the lesson: waiting on the blessings of fortune (opportunity) will cause you to accomplish nothing but waiting.
Fortis Fortuna Adiuvat: latin for “Fortune favors the bold”... mostly.
Literally, it’s more like “The goddess Fortuna helps those who are strong.”
(Latin scholars: please refrain from pontificating on my post. Start your own blog and write about Rev. Badger's shitty latin translations. Like the title says... MAKE YOUR OWN)
If we’re doing our part, and that part usually requires a LOT more work than we originally planned for, Fortuna will help us… because the truth of the matter is this:
Fortune only nudges things a degree or two.
The rest is entirely up to us. See, if we weren’t already doing the work, those couple degrees wouldn’t make an ounce of difference, but if we’re working our asses off, that little bump could make all the difference in the world.
This understanding is reflected in how I engage in a pious life. People are usually surprised at how little I pray for myself and my family. I tell them my energy is better spent doing the physical work to accomplish goals, helping my family grow confident and strong... and not by throwing offerings and words into the void, especially when I’m not doing my part.
I tend to make a lot more gratitude offerings. Gratitude for the strength, fortitude, and perseverance it took to achieve our goals.
After all, this isn’t Christianity. This isn’t a vending machine of divine favors. Frankly, that's not what I want my religious experience to be.
It’s work. Good, old fashion, hard work.
Once the work piece is done, the real blessing is seeing how the fortune we’ve been blessed with doesn’t come from beyond ourselves… it comes from within.
(See y’all tomorrow)
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