In the movie, The Wizard of Oz, it takes a house falling from Kansas to destroy the good witch but by the end of the movie some water accidentally thrown on the Wicked Witch is all it takes to destroy her. Granted, I'm sure water would have just as easily killed the good witch and all of this is just based on a classic book and movie. However it got me thinking and I say all that just to make this point: it took something a lot stronger to destroy the good. Think about it, if you got your mind set on the finished line for whatever goals you have, no matter how many obstacles get in your way you're going to find a way to get to that finished line. That is you'll find a way and keep getting back up if you have a made up mind you are going to see that finish line and know that it's not going to be easy. If you think you're going to get there without much work and it's going to be a fun easy ride the whole way, well you just might get discouraged enough to quit the first obstacle you meet, or the first time you get water thrown on you. Same goes for having your mind fixed and decided on being the person you want to be, hopefully that includes at least treating people right and standing up for what you believe in (two things I truly believe every one should do). Once you decide on this, first you can guarantee you're going to run in to obstacles and people to test you to see how serious you are. Sometimes I'm not even sure they are aware that they are part of those obstacles to test you. However, you got to remember that it doesn't matter how many times you get knocked down that counts or even how many obstacles you have to face that counts but it's how many times you get back up. If you don't care or get easily frustrated and/or distracted the smallest pot hole in your road to to the finish line can keep you off your road longer than you intended or wanted or even for good. Sometimes it takes detours though to get us prepared and even on a different road so we'll be where we're supposed to be. Personally I think I've been on the side of the road for to long and I need to get back in the race. I realize that this is a lot of analogies that all got me thinking from one of my favorite movies but hopefully there was some kind of decent point made. With that I will leave you with what is probably my favorite lines from the move between Dorothy and the Scarecrow:

Scarecrow: I haven't got a brain... only straw.
Dorothy: How can you talk if you haven't got a brain?
Scarecrow: I don't know... But some people without brains do an awful lot of talking... don't they?
Dorothy: Yes, I guess you're right