Hables,

Thank you so much for your post. I feel like I am faced with a challenge that is testing my mental strength just as much as my intellect. It is just so painful to keep standing and fighting all of the time, but I'm too stubborn to give in. Giving up would be the worst thing I could do; I can't imagine the shame and embarrassment that I would feel if I did - because I know that I can do this. It's almost as if the only alternative to giving up is standing and watching the punches as they come in. I would so much like to avoid the pain, but the only way to do that would be to back out of the fight 100%, which is not what I want.

One of my friends commented on how tough my situation is right now (before I told her any details). That encounter and your post are helping me through the weekend. I think I will truly be a magician if I can finish these projects haha. Somehow, though, I will trudge through and do my best.

Slamjammer, thanks for that. It's interesting because I feel that there is a lot of pressure on successful people (or people who have enjoyed a taste of success) to be bulletproof all of the time. I guess when history looks back 100+ years later, it only remembers a person's heights and strengths rather than all of the little details about their lives.

Thank you guys,
pkey