Famous Last Words

As the balmy afternoon faded into the cool of evening, the three of us sat amidst the scattered mess of tattered covers. leafing through pages and building piles. It wasn't long after we had begun, that we lost ample light for our eyes to enjoy the randomness of friend David's library. Books in Old English, books of classic poetry, books on plumbing, Shakespeare, swimming, Spurgeon, C.S. Lewis, even a few on "ways of the samurai" (or something like that); he had it all.

For a good a hour, we kept to ourselves enjoying the quiet. Breaking the silence, David randomly began reciting lines of a text that contained the last words of famous folk. I first thought it a bit unsettling to hear the words of someone who was on their deathbed, but quickly realized the value in such speech. It was da Vinci's last words that resonated with me most:

"I have offended God and mankind because my work did not reach the quality it should have."

It's amazing to think how anyone as great as da Vinci could ever have such regrets. After all, he did create the Mona Lisa and Last Supper, perhaps the two most well-known paintings in history. I mean, how could anyone trump that?! I find it incredibly difficult to fathom such regret dwelling within a man as accomplished as da Vinci.

So, I marinated on the quote for a few months...

I've kept da Vinci's words in my pocket, pulling them out from time to time in attempts to relate them to my own journey. It wasn't until yesterday that I realized a link. I've had his same mentality at different points along the way, allowing the feelings of inadequacy to hinder my progress and my drive. Comparing myself to others, which is a hard thing to avoid in this industry, almost always puts me in such a funk. But more importantly, I realized that by taking such thoughts captive and viewing them as a challenge, rather than a hindrance, growth and progress never fail to prevail. It's okay to feel mediocre for a short time. But it's not okay to allow that wave of mediocrity to seize you, for you will surely drown.

Maybe someday I'll find out what da Vinci truly felt when he uttered his last words. But for now, I will take them, and forge them into the key for my future successes.