Who are you when everything is on the line?

Some moments they ask who you are.

And some, like this one, demand you prove it.

There's a quote by Admiral McRaven that states,

if you really want to change the world, you must be your very best in your darkest moments.

And that's always resonated.

Because it's in our darkest moments that we learn how hard we can push when the mind whispers

of retreat.

Not because it feels good, but because it's who you are. Take a second and think about all the battles you've already fought.

The quiet and the loud, the subtle and the unmistakable.

Think about the mountains you've already climbed, the oceans you've crossed.

No one's path to get here was easy.

No one's.

Yet, here you stand.

No, not to paint a new portrait of yourself,

but to frame the one you've been breathing life into for years, today you hold that flag higher than it's ever been held.

Today, it all comes together.

Today, you bring it home.

Look, there's only so much that man can control.

In many ways, he navigates a world far bigger than him.

A world that grins in places before him obstacles and adversity and challenges of all varieties.

As if it's pointing at its watch and saying,

...