In 2006 when AT&T was known as Cingular Wireless, Sidekicks ruled the mobile phone market, and Miley Cyrus was still known as Hannah Montana, a baseball game in Chavez Ravine between the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers planted the seed for a crucial life lesson, never give up.

Down by four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning the Dodgers were on the verge of a loss. It was not a playoff game but it certainly felt like one. Every game late in the season is important for teams close enough to contend in the postseason. To lead off the bottom of the ninth, Jeff Kent came up to bat. On a 1-0 pitch he plows the ball over the left field wall, JD Drew gets a 2-1 count and proceeds to rip one over center field.

The Padres went to their bullpen to bring in their closer Trevor Hoffman. Hoffman was like kryptonite to the Dodgers, not having blown a save to LA since April 2001. With Russell Martin up to bat; Marlon Anderson on deck, Hoffman delivers and the ball is pulverized for another run. Anderson comes to the box and bye bye birdie. Four consecutive home runs to tie the game. If that was not enough drama worthy of a Hollywood film the game went into extra-innings. Nomar Garciaparra hits a walk-off for the Dodgers in the bottom of the 10th inning to win 11-10. This was the first time a team had hit four consecutive home runs in the ninth-inning to tie the game.

On Sunday, February 5th 2017 along with a million other people, I witnessed something historic on a whole different level. The New England Patriots won Super Bowl LI in spectacular fashion, being down at the half 21-3 against NFC champs Atlanta Falcons. If someone who did not watch the game was told afterward that the Patriots won, they would probably think big deal, they always win. This was different though, the Patriots that played during the first half would be unrecognizable as the Patriots. The Falcons played well and capitalized on that. The Falcons made it look like they were playing a high school level team by the amount of points there were able to score on the Pats during that first half.

The second half was a different story however with the Patriots coming back and the Falcons seemingly out of steam. I personally thought it would be unbelievable if New England was somehow able to win this game. By the time the score was 28-20 Atlanta, I started to think it was possible. At the end of the fourth quarter the game was tied 28-28 which was the first ever overtime period for a Super Bowl in history. The overtime format was sudden death; the first team to score wins, unless it was by field goal which the opposing team would have an opportunity to respond. The Patriots win the coin toss and receive the ball. The Pats kept the momentum moving and scored on the only drive of OT to win 34-28. I along with a million others were speechless.

There were tons of disappointed Atlanta fans and understandably so. The Falcons were so dominant in the first half that the Patriots had less than 1 percent chance of winning the game. As it is said it is not over until it is over. Never give up, and never allow yourself to believe it’s over until it is over. I feel this is a lesson that can be applied to multiple facets of our own personal lives.

In the aftermath of the game some fans believe the game was rigged. How can a sane person believe THAT game with it’s ups and downs was rigged? For those who believe the game was rigged, come on you’re better than that. We all experience loss and have different ways of coping with it. Entertaining the thought the game was rigged discredits the Falcons which played very well up until the second half. Everyone loses, it is a fact of life.

The only difference between losers and winners is that winners use their losses as a lesson and learn to win from those losses. Losers are consumed by their losses and allow themselves to think they were somehow unlucky, or that the world is out to get them. The wins of the Pats, the aforementioned Dodgers, and multiple come from behind Cinderella sport stories and non-sport stories (i.e. Steve Jobs fired from Apple) should be a lesson to never give up on your dreams, keep pushing, and strive for excellence. Sometimes you will lose and sometimes you will win but only if your attitude is right. That will make all the difference.

UPDATE: I don’t think I have experiences losses like I have this past year. I have to admit it has been a challenge and struggle to keep my attitude right. One of the learning from it is that negative attitude creeps in slowly and usually undetected. I feel that is what has happened to me and I think I realized it too late. I have been knocked to the ground by life this past year and as I lie there pushing my elbows against the earth to look around thinking “what the hell happened?” I know that I will recover, the how I will do that remains a mystery. Sometimes I think that gradual life improvements here and there will add up. Time will tell.