Determined To Succeed

Single minded determination can be a good quality, and lead to some amazing accomplishments.? It took Albert Einstein eight years to develop his theory of relativity.? Michael Phelps trained for a decade on his way to winning 14 gold medals. These men had a single focus, suffering setbacks along the way, but persisting until they got to the finish line.

Thing 3 has the same determination qualities as these great achievers, albeit with a somewhat, how shall I say, less admirable end goal in mind.? He is determined, every waking moment and does everything within his power, to put his hands in the toilet.

Open the bathroom door the tiniest amount and Thing 3 tries to squirm his way through the crack like a mouse.? Like a dog, he can hear the bathroom door open from across the house and he’ll drop whatever he was doing and make a run for it.? All the while, with a mischievous grin that dares you to stop him.

Lately, Thing 3 absolutely loves bathtime, which was a welcome change from the screamfests of a few months ago.? Last night it finally occured to me why he loves taking a bath – because he is that much closer to achieving his ultimate goal.

I literally turned my head for one second, just to pour soap in the water as the tub was filling up.? In that time, Thing 3 managed to open the lid, put his arms in the toilet up to his elbows, and splash water all over the place.? It was one of those split second displays of pure athletism, much like Michael Phelps winning his 7th gold medal by 1/100 of a second.? Except I don’t recall Michael Phelps having that mischeivous laugh.