Survival, Endurance, or Both?

Many songs have been made about survival over the years, including I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor, Survival of the Fittest by Mobb Deep, and Eye of the Tiger by Survivor, and Stayin Alive by the Bee Gees to name a few. They all communicate a message about hanging in there and what it takes to survive. According to the Merriam Webster Dictionary, survival means “the state or fact of continuing to live or exist, typically in spite of an accident, ordeal, or difficult circumstances.” Is it really true that only the strong survive? What constitutes as strong and who is responsible for defining strength?  What if strength has nothing to do with survival? Perhaps, it is endurance that makes survival possible, hence defining strength.  Let’s define endurance. The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines endurance as “the ability to withstand hardship or adversity; especially : the ability to sustain a prolonged stressful effort or activity.” We exist until we no longer do, therefore every day is natural survival.   If you are breathing, you are surviving, so the key is in the endurance of our existence. How are you choosing to survive, by enduring or existing?  

I know the definitions seem similar, but I see something much greater between them.  For example, you survived a car accident, but you endured the recovery. You made progress instead of laying there defeated.  I remember when my father began his recovery for a leg amputation. His attitude and desire to walk again helped him endure the struggles that came with recovery. He could have chosen just to survive/exist and not progress. The ability to endure the event is the true strength because some people do not make it. There were some people in the rehabilitation center that complained and chose to do nothing, succumbing to depression and limited mobility.  Not everyone thinks they can endure, nor can the find the strength to do so. We all exist and are surviving daily, but some of us lack the endurance to go beyond our mere existence.

You could choose to wake up daily and do nothing, or you can choose to continue with the next day of your life seeking betterment, balance, peace, and sustainability. If you choose to maneuver through each day, each struggle, each circumstance, and each situation, congratulations you are enduring! You are doing more than just letting life consume you.  Whatever the reason, you continue to move forward, which is indicative of endurance. Moving forward means taking a step that you are comfortable with, not the steps others order for you. It might be a shuffle or a leap, either way, the ultimate movement is forward. It could mean you choose not to be involved in something, start a new career, take time for yourself, try something new, enter into personal coaching or counseling, take your health back, or take a stand for something that has silenced you for many years. Your movement represents your ability to endure the entity and move despite the pain or obstacles. The absence of endurance adds to the chaos and has the potential to create feelings of hopelessness and helplessness.

Today, declare your commitment to move and say it boldly.  NO MORE. NO WAY. I CAN. I WILL. You might feel like the tortoise, but we all know he won in the end.  Helplessness is not an option. Make the movement matter and celebrate each success because it is personal for you, regardless of how big or small the step. It is your life, and that small movement can have an enormous impact physically, emotionally, and spiritually.  Fight to sustain and withstand the turmoils that will come and go in life.

Believe your endurance is essential for your survival. It will change your experience. It will give you information to share with others to help them endure. It will change your perception, and it might even change your very being.  Fight for the change that jump starts endurance, and make a choice to do more than merely exist. Let the final line of your story fluctuate between the following: I can endure. I will endure. I have endured. I live with endurance daily.  Never give up on living beyond your existence.

“Persistence and endurance will make you omnipotent.”
- Casey Neistat

References
survival. (n.d.) In Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary. Retrieved from
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/survival.
endurance. (n.d.) In Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary. Retrieved from
http://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/endurance

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