It was then that Heather decided to take a somewhat experimental treatment route including the removal of her left lung, a rib, part of her diaphragm, and the lining of her heart and lung, and a chemotherapy cocktail wash of her chest and abdomen before being stitched up, followed by weeks of chemotherapy and radiation. But her life was about to change. Again …

How many dreams have been still-born by a single rejection letter or a bad interview or a critical co-worker? How many dreams have never even been inseminated by the fertilizing agent of action because of doubt and the lack of conviction or the pull of the status quo or just plain laziness? And most importantly, what quality is missing in such circumstances and how do we develop it?

Life is a journey, a challenge to be mastered, but more importantly, to be learned from. But lessons, and the growth they promote, don’t come to us by taking the easy path. Downhill is still downhill. It takes you to the bottom. Paths of least resistance have always been attractive … until you get to where such paths take us.