Pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever.

Lance Armstrong, an American cyclist who was diagnosed with brain, lung and testicular cancer all at the same time. After treatment, he went back on the bike to win the prestigious Tour de France a record-breaking seven consecutive years, from 1999 to 2005.

Whether it’s the best of times or the worst of times, it’s the only time we’ve got.

Art Buchwald

The heights by great men reached and kept,
Were not attained by sudden flight,
But they, while their companions slept,
Were toiling upward in the night.

from the poem: The Ladder of St. Augustine, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

When the world pushes you to your knees,
you are in a perfect position to pray.

A religious quote (thanks Diane!)

Pain is inevitable, but misery is optional.

Tim Hansel

When you lose, do not lose the lesson

Dalai Lama

Nature, when she adds difficulties, adds brains.

Emerson

Difficulties strengthen the mind, as well as labor does the body

Seneca

Aromatic plants bestow
No spicy fragrance where they grow;
But crushed and trodden to the ground,
Diffuse their balmy sweets around

Goldsmith

There is healing in the bitter cup.

Southey