Rating: Good
Torah Bright: It Takes Courage blurb excerpt: This is Torah’s heartfelt account of growing up in a close-knit Mormon family and follows the highs and lows of Torah’s professional snowboarding career during which she became the first Australian Snowboarder to achieve a Gold medal in the Winter Olympics.
My opinion: A poorly edited but enjoyable story about a small-town girl's pursuit of her passion and the realization of her dream. Punctuated with pain, triumphs, heartbreak, and headaches it's definitely worth the read. *Transparent Bias - I am an Aussie, loved watching her win gold, and live not far from where she grew up.
Lessons from Torah Bright It Takes Courage:
Have the courage to put yourself first - Torah openly admitted that she rushed into Marriage despite warning signs. She was candid when explaining how brutal that time in her life was and the emotional turmoil it caused her. She also poetically explained the sense of freedom and relief that washed over her once she filed for divorce. On the return of her love of Snowboarding and zest for life, "I did not arrive at these feelings by chance. I'd made a choice"
It's possible to find extraordinary beauty in the ordinary - "I have won many titles and traveled to the most extraordinary places in the world. Sports has brought me skills and taught me life lessons I will never forget. However, looking back I realize that it's not the extraordinary aspects of my life that are beautiful to me. It is the wonder and marvel in the ordinary aspects"
Be rigid in the goal, flexible in the approach - Injury, obstacles, tragedy, and heartbreak often got in the way of "the plan". But Torah, guided by her brother, was quick to pivot and find a different path to success.
Opportunity is sometimes determined by geography - At a very young age, Torah was forced to leave Australia in pursuit of her dream and the opportunities presented abroad. Something, not all parents would be willing to let their kids do, not all kids would be capable of.
Adversity and injury are as much a mental battle as they are a physical one - It was amazing to get access to the frequency and severity of injuries an elite athlete suffers and how challenging that can be physically and mentally.
Depression doesn't discriminate - here's a woman at the top of her game, seemingly with the world at her feet, and yet she struggled. And she masked her struggles publically.
Time is precious - This book does a great job of reminding us of this fact. With Sarah's death, a miscarriage, injuries close to competition, and last-minute qualifications it's hard not to appreciate the time we have.
Torah Bright: It Takes Courage Best Quotes:
“Everyone has a journey, they're all so so different. if you were to read this book I'd like you to take away that anything is possible. When life hands you lemons, make beef stew."
"We, as human beings, are capable of so much. To find the courage to make it all possible is what makes us fully human."
"I was pushing through the pain and I wore a smile when I was doing it."
"You can't give to other people if you aren't giving yourself what you need, if you're not nourishing yourself first."
"Courage pushed me to survive the daily navigations between the known and the unknown. Courage helped me to deal with the inevitable. Courage allowed me to distinguish between what I could change and what I could not. Courage sustained me as I journeyed deep into my own particular version of hell. Courage gave me the strength and the grace to re-emerge, and still find life worth living."
"I've learned that if you keep showing up, anything is possible. I've learned that you need to enjoy yourself and listen to yourself when you're not. I've learned that life is about friends and family, and friends who are family. If there is any wisdom I can offer you it's: go outside on powder days and don't be afraid to turn."
"Every now and then a man's mind is stretched by a new idea or sensation and never shrinks back to its former dimensions" - Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.
"We never know how high we are, Till we are called to rise; And then, if we are true to plan, Our stature touch the skies" - Emily Dickinson
"One thing you can give and still keep is your word"
What Next:
If you are interested in this book, you may want to check out our list of the Best Biographies
My personal recommendation for those who loved this book - Beyond Possible
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