Victory

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival." - Winston Churchill

This weekend was full of victory, and very important victories, at that.  Yes, there are some insignificant victories. And, yes, I had a few of those this weekend too, but writing about them here would just water-down the power of the most important ones.

There were many victories at the Relay for Life this weekend here in Grapevine, TX.  It began with the survivor lap.  Those men and women walking around a middle school track have been victorious against cancer - the terror, to which Winston Churchill referred.  We were there to celebrate their victory, and to try to help others be victorious as well by raising money to find a cure.  We honored the memory of those who were lost too early to the terror, and we continued to relay for those who still have a chance at survival.

"Victory at all costs" - We walked all night; we pushed ourselves.
"Victory in spite of all terror" - Even when it seems that our fight, cancer patients' fights, will be useless, we continue to fight.
"Victory however long and hard the road may be" - We didn't get a break because cancer doesn't give breaks.  It's a continuous battle until we find a cure.
"For without victory there is no survival." - We fight because we have no other choice.  And we will continue to fight.  Until hope becomes a cure.  We will find a cure.

And, of course, we have the victory over a very literal terror - Osama Bin Laden was killed by US forces after almost 10 years of searching.  His terror reigned over us since September 11, 2001.  He is solely responsible for thousands and thousands of American lives lost.  He ignited a fire in the American people that day, and we vowed to be victorious over him.  Finally, we were.

"Victory at all costs" - Thousands of men and women sacrifice their lives in the armed forces in pursuit of our freedom.  Their lives and the sacrifices of those among them are the unmatchable costs of this victory.  We should all be forever grateful.
"Victory in spite of all terror" - When the deck was stacked against us, many in this country doubted our mission in the war against terror, in our mission against the enemy.  There were points where the enemy was winning, but eventually, we got our man, despite the terrors we faced along the way.
"Victory however long and hard the road may be" - It was a long road, and we still have a good deal of road ahead of us.  We will get there.  This victory is a step along that road.
"For without victory there is no survival" - That's it.  There is nothing more to say.  We will continue to be victorious against terror because there is no other option.

Winston Churchill said it best.