Standing Tall

I’ve just finished reading the book, “Standing Tall”, A memoir of Tragedy and Triumph by C. Vivian Stringer, head coach of the Rutgers University Women’s basketball team.

Thank-you, brother-in-law Colin for this great book, I’ve enjoyed reading it so much.

This is an incredible life story of one women’s journey from poverty to priviledge; full of tragedy and triumph. With her young life centered around family, education, athletics and adversity, this young women has gone on to have huge success in her marriage, career (on and off the court) motherhood and a fight against cancer. Her life has been put in the spotlight with the good and the bad and sometimes the ugly, but she always stood tall, as her father, who suffered with the lose of a leg at a young age, taught her to always do. Now she has gone on to teach hundreds of young women she has coached directly these same valuable life lessons. Now with her story out, you to can benefit from her secrets of a successful life of faith in the face of discrimination, the finding and losing of great love ( her husband died suddenly of a heart attack at 47 as she performed CPR), the devastation of a child being disabled severely by spinal meningitis, a son being charged with a terrible crime he didn’t commit, a private fight with breast cancer, and the public humiliation of her and her team of young ladies by the tongue of an ignorant man.
When Vivian Stringer met Maya Angelou she bent down to greet her in her wheel chair and Ms. Angelou said to her, “Bend down for no one, and bow only for the Lord.”
Stand tall; was the reoccurring theme as I read personally impacting statements over and over, such as: Oprah saying to Coach Stringer and her team, “You make me proud to spell my name W-O-M-A-N!”

Quotes from “Standing Tall” that touched my heart, moved my soul and brought me to tears:

From Maya Angelou, “You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact,it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it.”

“To think like a champion…that means stepping up, no matter what kind of obstacles life puts in front of you. It means digging deep within yourself and finding the will to fight, no matter how many times you get knocked down. Most of all, it means never taking the easy road out.”

“My hope is that they will come to share my fundamental and unshakable faith: that each and every one of us has the ability to triumph in the face of adversity, to lift ourselves up and succeed, no matter what trials we encounter.”

“…perhaps this terrible thing has happened so that I could go on to inspire others, to give them hope.”

“…to give hope to those without hope, strength to those whose strength had failed.”
“To Rise and give Hope!”

“They say that God never gives you a burden you can’t bear, and maybe that’s true, but I know that there have been plenty of days when I have not been able to see my way forward, days where I have thought, I cannot lift my head and go on. But I know that it has always been better for me to pick up that burden, no matter how heavy, and to carry it to the very best of my abilities.”

“The minute you allow disappointment or tragedy to stop you in your tracks, you have stolen something from yourself, something more precious than you can even imagine: your dreams.
It is through overcoming that we understand what we are capable of; it is only after we have been tested that we can go on to offer comfort to others.”

“Real success is achieved when you set your own worth, fulfill your own destiny, and stand up for what you know to be right.”

“What we have learned, we now must teach.”

“Accept the hand that has been dealt and take a step into the unknown.”

“All you can do is your best and forgive yourself for the rest.”

“Sometimes we are tested so we can go on to help others.”

“Life does get disrupted, no matter what you do or how careful you are. Yet even when you get pushed down, you have to pick yourself up and go on, believing that other good things are in store for you.”

Lyrics from the Yolanda Adams song, “The Battle is the Lord’s.”
“There is no pain Jesus can’t feel, no hurt He cannot heal. No matter what you’re going through, remember that God is only using you, for the battle is not yours, it’s the Lord’s.”