We’ve all heard this phrase hundreds of times, but where does it come from, what does it mean, and how can we do it?

Sources indicate that this famous proverb came from American Educator Thomas H. Palmer’s "Teachers Manual" from 1840.

Its meaning is simple and correlates well with Jim Valvano’s famous quote, “Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.”

No matter the challenge or circumstance we’re faced with, don't ever give up and continue to try again.

One of my absolute favorite examples of this are innocent little children. At their young age they’re learning how to crawl, walk, and run. During this time they’re constantly falling down, but they always manage to find their balance and try again.

As we grow up, we gain knowledge and experiences but we can eventually lose our balance. Failure, humiliation, self-doubt can cause us to get up slower and slower every time we fall. Once we’ve gotten back on our feet and feel alive, proud, accomplished, we’re then taken back to our knees. It’s a never ending cycle that challenges us throughout our entire lives.

So how can we consistently rise up? One of my favorite sayings is that there’s “light at the end of the tunnel.” Although that may be true it’s what's in the tunnel that will ultimately define us. The experiences we learn during hardships can teach us and fuel us to become stronger than we were before.

But that’s not the only way to raise up; friends, family, neighbors can all help overcome life's difficulties. If you’re looking for professional help in overcoming life's obstacles we have an incredible team at Health West that is ready, able, and willing to help.

There's no cheat code for life — we’re always going to have setbacks. But that doesn’t have to stop us from using them as both motivation and a learning experience. Use each day to be your best, be better than you were the day before.

Emillio Rodriguez is the Marketing and Outreach Manager at Health West. He graduated from the University of Idaho in 2018 and has been with Health West for several months.