Tenacious
“I’ve battled demons that won’t let me sleep
Called to the sea but she abandoned me
But I won’t never give up, no, never give up, no, no…
And I won’t let you get me down
I’ll keep gettin’ up when I hit the ground
Oh, never give up, no, never give up no, no, oh”
I’ve never wanted to have to be strong. To keep hitting the ground and having to pick myself back up again. But whether it was the stairs at 2, the pavement at 5, 6, 7 and 8, the wall in gym at 11, the ice in my twenties, the slippery mountain sides in my 30s or the laundry room floor this past weekend, it keeps happening. And it usually takes me months to get myself back to ground zero, before I fell, or was punched or pushed.
As I write to you today, I’m sitting painfully at my laptop overlooking Somers Wharf in Bermuda, attempting to navigate my keyboard and life with my right arm and hand in a sling and my left hand trying to play the role of my right.
Last week at about this time, I’d asked one of my personal heroes, and trainer, Phoenyx Long (previously known as Malenna Saunders) to come up with one word to describe me and my “Brand”
And after a few moments she responded. TENACIOUS. Which derives from the from the Latin verb Tener, To Hold or "tending to hold fast… to something”.
And it clicked. Yes, more than resilient, more than strong, more than brave or courageous, or even inspirational, authentic, and vulnerable, I really have held fast to something. I may have given ground and even compromised on the outside, but not inside. And my new friend Parks here reminded me of that today as I got myself awkwardly into his car with my left hand.
But, my dear audience, I’m in pain right now, and as much as I’d like to say I can continue to write, I can’t. My back aches from my sling pulling me down towards the keyboard, and my hand is cramping.
So, I will leave you with this question to contemplate. Is tenacity the stubborn commitment to keep going even when your own health is at risk? Or is it the willingness to take a break when you know you don’t have the strength at every given moment.
Best wishes to you this week. And stay tenacious in your own way.
Holly Lynch is a 20+ year communications veteran and life-long social impact advocate and strategist who has helped individuals, educational leaders, and companies tackle the toughest challenges in their worlds.
Having survived countless life setbacks and two rounds with terminal cancer, while seeing the country-wide collapse of the systems and safety nets for the most vulnerable in and outside our communities, she is now shifting her life and career trajectories to focus on coaching those facing down fundamental shifts and transitions as they try to navigate and rebuild their lives, institutions and businesses during these unprecedented times.