Ripples v7.31: Ripples for TAMING DRAGONS!

Ripples v7.31: Ripples for TAMING DRAGONS!
Monday, August 22, 2005
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=o=o=o=o=o=o=o= PEBBLE =o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o

Challenge is a dragon with a gift in its mouth....
tame the dragon and the gift is yours.
-Noela Evans, submitted by Jill B., Fennimore WI

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o= BOULDER =o=o=o=o=o=o=o

Character cannot be
developed in ease and quiet.
Only through experience
of trial and suffering
can the soul be strengthened,
vision cleared,
ambition inspired, and
success achieved.
-Helen Keller, submitted by Shellie L., Parker CO

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o= PONDER =o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o

This was another travel-filled week as I began in California to spend a day with student leaders at University of the Pacific. Then it was back to the midwest to visit my buddies who each year create the Leadership Safari at Central Michigan University, as well as an energized group of peer mentors attending a symposium at IUPUI in Indiana.

I sensed that participants at each stop were excited about the possibilities that lay ahead for them; I also sensed that many of them worried about countless challenges also present. I tried to gently remind them: they will not succeed IN SPITE of those challenges; instead, it is precisely BECAUSE they dare to face those challenges that they can strengthen their skills and their resolve to conquer those internal and external obstacles that might otherwise limit their opportunities.

This week we all need to put on our bravest face and TAME A DRAGON, whether that dragon is an obstacle to a personal goal we\'re seeking, a seemingly immovable barrier to success in a work project, or an interpersonal conflict that diminishes the potential of a relationship. Go for it, my friend: GO FOR IT!

Oh, and with the strike at Northwest Airlines, the painful withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and of course the ongoing crises in Iraq, Darfur, and elsewhere, please know I am counting on you to help me send out into the world an extra dose of

Peace,
Paul