Grit or Quit
Ecclesiastes 3:1: “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”
A few months ago, I donated blood. At the end, there was a phlebotomist giving me the usual instructions. As she talked about the importance of fluids, not overdoing it, getting rest, avoiding strenuous exercise, etc., I wasn’t really paying attention. My mind was already on what I was doing next. I think she could tell. Because at the end, she looked at me and spoke very directly: “If you feel weak, lightheaded, or as if you could pass out, don’t fight your body. You will lose!”
It was as if this lady could see who she was dealing with — an aging, yet sometimes stubborn and overly competitive man. But her words stuck, and I’ve thought about them often in the past few days: Don’t fight your body. You will lose.
Yesterday, a couple of miles outside of Logroño, I came across a Frenchman we had seen a few times on the trail. He was a smaller man with a large backpack. Earlier, we had talked and laughed. But this time, he was walking in the opposite direction. Steve and I jokingly said, “Hey, wrong way!” But there was no smile or laughter returned. Instead, there was a somber look on his face as he said,
“My foot… my foot is just too bad. I am going back to France.”
Then there was the lovely woman from the States that I walked with for about an hour in 90° temps. That night, she ended up in the hospital with heat exhaustion. Her Camino is now over.
On the Camino, your body takes a beating. Thirteen, seventeen, nineteen miles — day after day after day. Muscles begin to ache. Old injuries flare up. Blisters appear and don’t go away. Rashes. Shin splints. Dehydration. Exhaustion. Sprained ankles. And on top of it all, good luck sleeping in a room with eight bunk beds and a community bathroom.
We live in a world that emphasizes the importance of resilience — sticking with challenges and pushing through difficulties over the long haul. The Bible even emphasizes the importance of perseverance and endurance when it comes to our faith (Hebrews 12:1; James 1:12). Successful people learn the value of these characteristics and often see the rewards of pressing through trials and hardships.
Yet, our bodies are fragile, and we all have limitations. Sometimes, we just need to throw in the towel, cut our losses, and live to fight another day.
Annie Duke, in her popular book Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away, states that quitting is not always the same thing as failing. Duke emphasizes that quitting can be a smart, proactive choice when circumstances change or new information emerges.
Over the past nine days, I have met some incredibly resilient people — the woman carrying a backpack for both her and her sick husband; the 86-year-old Canadian man walking alone; the lady who could barely walk because of blisters, yet continued to put one foot in front of the other.
And yet, not all of us will finish. And that’s okay. It’s a microcosm of life.
While there is great value in resilience, endurance, and perseverance, there can also be value in giving up.
It’s not just true on the Camino.
It’s true for the person trapped in a dysfunctional and unhealthy relationship, unsure whether to stay and stick it out or whether it’s time to end it and move on.
It’s true for the aging adult who wants to stay at home and maintain independence but also feels the pull to an assisted living facility.
It’s true for the student pursuing a degree but unsure if this is what they really want to do for the rest of their life.
All of us will face these types of decisions — a choice between grit and quit.
I can’t tell you what to do, but I can remind you that there is a season for every activity under heaven. And I believe if you seek the Lord and listen carefully, you’ll know what to do. Either way… it will be okay.
