The Indomitable Strength of the Human Spirit.

She moves confidently down the sidewalk, white stick in hand, sunglasses shading her eyes as traffic rolls by at 40 mph. I don't know her story, but every time I see her I am amazed at the indomitable strength of the human spirit. I am assuming she is blind, at least to some degree, but you would never know it by the way she walks--it's the cane and sunglasses that give that much away. I also assume she is walking to pick her child up from the elementary school a half mile away. I see her almost every afternoon, and almost every afternoon I am hungry to know her story. It is obvious she has great strength, she's a fighter.

I recently read the blog of a high school friend. She has ALS. And she is young--oh so young, with three sweet kids to care for. In the matter of one very short year, she has gone from running marathons to acquiring her first wheelchair. And she laughs. She laughs because it is easier that way. She also has great strength. She, too, is a fighter.

My sister cares for my kids with the loving tenderness she reserves for her own. It is I who reminds her NOT to lift my sleeping angel from her car seat, with a warning: Mindy, you recently had a stroke; no heavy lifting for you. She runs. She runs despite a weakened leg and a foot with some remaining palsy. She listens to my sob stories and cries with me, when it should be the other way around. What difficulties have I been dealt in this life that compare with hers? She, too, has strength. She's also a fighter.

I think about these stories, and so many more, and I am in such awe of the indomitable strength of the human spirit. In a way, I know that we are all this strong; I've seen my share of tough times, and I made it out alright. But sometimes I catch myself thinking: I could never handle that. Or I think: That would kill me. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, it is true; these women are living, breathing proof of it. So, where do you find strength? What drives you to continue fighting? Think about it.