You know, we could all learn a lot from that great American Icon, Elmer Fudd. Does he worry about failing? Does he worry about what people will think of him? Not Elmer!!!!! He knows in his heart that he was born to hunt wabbits, and that's what he does.

Nothing breeds confidence like failure.

I don't think you'll ever find that statement in a fortune cookie. But there is a lot of truth to it, if you have the indomitable spirit of E. Fudd, esquire.

When my youngest son first moved out on his own, it wasn't really by choice. He had just graduated from college and I married Ruth and moved out of my house. There really wasn't a place for him to live with his Dad any more, and my son knew it was time that he stretched his wings. It took an enormous amount of courage on his part to move to a different part of the country with no job in hand and no money other than what I could afford to help him with. And his worst fears weren't as bad as reality. The first six months, he couldn't get ANY job, despite being willing to do just about anything and he stayed in a run down, depressing old motel in the worst part of town. I know he nearly starved, because I couldn't send him as much money as he really needed. On every level, his life looked like a failure. But, he persevered, despite the ugly circumstances of his life and finally got a decent job and was able to move into an apartment. That was 8 years ago. Since then, when he's had to face other hard challenges, I remind him that he came through those first six months, and if he handled that, he could handle anything. And each time he has survived a hard time, or made stupid mistakes that he paid for dearly, his confidence has strengthened. He knows he can get through hard times now, and that if he makes a stupid mistake he can "Get right up, dust himself off and start right over again." That's a wonderful lesson to learn.

All of this applies to performing. When your worst fears are realized, and you forget lyrics to songs or do something really embarassing on stage, you discover that people don't ridicule you. If you laugh at yourself and keep on going, the audience's heart goes out to you and in an odd way, you've won them over. Everybody knows failure. It's something that we all an relate to.

I've seen Gordon Bok forget lyrics to a song when doing a concert in a large auditorium to the point where the finally had to just acknowledge that he couldn't remember the words. Gordon is confident enough in himself that he'd just laugh and acknowledge that it happened. Or more likely, he would acknowledge that it happened because I remember it. But he's probably long since forgotten it. Mistakes go with the territory. In a way, it's just as well that you make them early on so that you understand that mistakes don't do any lasting harm. Who ever walked out of a concert and said... "Man, I had a great time... he didn't make a single mistake!" And he probably did, anyway.

When life gets you down, just think about Elmer. He was born to lose, and yet he triumphs anyway.

Now, Daffy, Duck... that's a horse of a different color.

Jerry