Luck is a coin that has two sides to it: the luck side, and the courage side. One without the other is just meaningless. I was taught about this coin from the intricacies of the French language, and knowing the true value of the “luck coin” can be life-changing.
The “luck coin” concept brightened my life while swimming in France back in 2006. Before my first meet, The Bordeaux Championships (where winners were awarded magnum bottles of great Bordeaux — have I mentioned that I miss France?), my coach and teammates wished me luck in typical French fashion by saying “bon courage.” Bon courage. Have good courage.
The French do not speak of “good luck” in the American way, it simply isn’t a colloquial phrase, for their innate sense of confidence permits them to know that all they need to do is to have the courage to hold true to themselves, to their training, and to their inner confidence. Luck is random, but good luck is purposed and takes inner courage. Sometimes in life it is easier to allow bad things to happen to us rather than to accept and expect good things. Too often when life is too good, the fear of it all falling apart can dissuade our ability to even enjoy the good. It takes great courage to believe that good things will happen to you. It takes courage in an athletic race to keep one’s mind positive, calm, and confident.
Tomorrow I will be in Houston to cheer on my good friend Nicole who will be completing her first full Ironman. She will swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and run 26.2 miles. She is trained, confident, ready. She is ready to be her own hero, and to her, I give my most sincere luck coin wishes. BON COURAGE, NICOLE!
Be your own hero. Have the courage to embrace the good things in your life, and start expecting these good things to continue.