Where is the grit?
Today I watched Episode 14, The Amateur Hour. It aired on January 14, 1952.
In this episode, Lucy buys a dress on sale, but it turns out to be over her budget. Ricky isn’t happy and tells her to return it. The thing is, she can’t because it was a final sale.
Lucy then gets the idea to find a job. She answers an ad in the newspaper for a babysitter. It pays very well, and Ethel warns her that there must be a catch.
And there is.
Lucy thinks she is babysitting one boy, but there are actually two. Their mother plays a trick on her, and the kids are horrible and treat her poorly.
On top of all that craziness—in true Lucy fashion—the boys’ mother has entered them in a show with a $100 first prize. Somehow, Lucy ends up standing in for their mother and performing with the boys. And they win!
This episode was crazy!
It was sheer madness, and I just laughed. The kids were horrible—kicking Lucy in the shins, demanding cookies and milk, and even burning her at the stake!
It made me remember all of my “crappy” jobs.
My first job was as a bagger at a grocery store. I have so much respect for people who work in grocery stores. I was a minor and couldn’t do everything, but I cleaned up vomit from children who got sick in the store, poured out sour milk, and cleaned up a lot of broken glass after people dropped things.
Then there was the summer I walked through neighborhoods dropping off flyers urging people to conserve water—and it was 102 degrees outside.
And one of the best ones was counting lice.
Yup. I worked at a research center, and my job was to count the lice on people’s heads to determine whether they qualified for a research study.
I know other people have had it much worse, and my heart goes out to everyone who has had to endure a crappy job. Most of us have done some kind of work that was definitely not our favorite.
And then, as always, I got to thinking: What did all those jobs give me?
They gave me grit.
Google AI defines grit as a personality trait characterized by perseverance and passion for long-term goals. It combines resilience, the ability to overcome setbacks, and the sustained effort required to achieve difficult, long-term objectives despite challenges.
Grit has gotten me through so much.
It got me through taking care of my husband and our family when he had cancer. It got me through working at a start-up for three and a half years. And recently, it has been getting me through losing my father to leukemia and the side effects of chemotherapy.
Grit is not something that is simply given to us. It is earned through our experiences.
Do you have grit?
If you do—kudos. You have climbed the mountain and survived.
I celebrate you.
