BY RICHARD MORGAN

Most of us have had quite a few things in our lives that we’ve done well, things we’re proud of. But, of course, we also have had quite a few failures as well. Unfortunately, we tend to dwell on the failures, more than we celebrate the victories.

As an example, there are times I play the piano and sing out in public for various occasions. One of the songs is “These Days” by Jackson Browne. In it, there’s this line: “Don’t confront me with my failures, I have not forgotten them.” And when I sing that, I often have trouble getting that line out. Because I can’t help but think of many of the failures I’ve had in my life.

The thing is though, I’ve had a pretty good life. I’ve had lots of successes. But I tend to gloss over the good and dwell on the bad. I think that’s human nature, unfortunately. So, to counteract that somewhat, I have my own “Personal Top Ten.” And maybe, just maybe, you should too.

But how does one go about that? Well, you can make your own rules of course. But for me, and if I ever discuss this with anyone, I always tell them to keep your marriage and your children’s births out of it. The reason? Because those are obvious. I’m incredibly proud of both my daughters, and so yeah, I think that’s a tremendous accomplishment, raising them to what they’ve become. But it’s also kinda “expected” for people to say that. But of course, it’s your list; you can do whatever you want.

I won’t share my whole list. But here are two.

1) My first league championship. When I started coaching track in 1988, the team I took over was horrible. And I had almost no coaching experience. So when, after a few years, my team won the league, it felt like we had just won a world championship. While winning a league title doesn’t sound like much, it showed me that I had done something right. And many league championships later, it’s STILL in my top ten. Because it was my first.

2) My first marathon. Not because it was my best; it wasn’t. In fact, I’ve run some since then, and most have been much faster. But still, my first was something I couldn’t believe I actually accomplished. So yeah, I was very proud. And I still am.

I have a bunch more, but you get the idea. Is it necessary to make a top ten? Of course not. But maybe, in those times when you’re feeling like a failure (we all have them) you can look at your list and remind yourself that you HAVE had successes. And will also have some more.

It’s up to you what you do with this list. You can just keep it in your head. Or you can write it on a piece of paper and hide it away from others, if you’re embarrassed. Or post it on your bathroom mirror, or your refrigerator, so you can always see it, and remind yourself of these things.

It’s not about bragging. In fact, you don’t have to show it to another living soul if you don’t want to. But it IS about reminding yourself, in your dark times, that you have done good things in this world.

Because we all have had successes, even if we tend to forget them. Sometimes though, we need to be reminded. Just to remember that we have made a difference.