It don't come easy

Yesterday my wife told me about a story she had read in the newspaper. It was about a kid "withdrawing" from high school. Withdrawing? Is that the same thing as Dropping out? How sophisticated and nonjudgmental that sounds. It doesn't sound like a quitter or a loser. No, this guy sounds like he is making a transaction at a bank. It sounds like this is a perfectly legitimate decision and of mild consequence.

When I was in high school, I would have loved to "withdraw" because I hated the whole high school experience. But it wasn't "withdrawing" it was dropping out. No matter how big of a loser I was, I was reluctant to "Withdraw" and prove it to everyone. So I toughed it out and graduated, leaving that pitiful chapter of my life behind me and by default I was a winner.

When a loser becomes a winner it is a powerful experience. You see the possibilities that exist all around you. You begin to think, "Maybe I can succeed". You begin to think that you will give it a try. You begin to understand that showing up is a big part of the battle. By losing some of the time it doesn't make you a loser, it makes you a player. You're in the game. You will win some and you will lose some. But now you are playing and not on the sideline.

So by taking the stigma out of dropping out and calling it "withdrawing" you make it easier for someone to give up and become a loser in society. Kids need to struggle through the adversity of life. When you get to the other side the possibilities open up.