Maybe it's that I'm too young to have heard of Jean Nidetch, or maybe I've just gotten to this point in life by being completely clueless. I asked my mom who she is, and of course she knew – "she's the founder of Weight Watchers." Well, duh!
No offense to anyone, but I had never heard of her until her autobiography was sold at our WW meeting. Of course, I had to read the book. I had to make sure that if there was any lesson to be learned from her life, I had it.
Weight Watchers started in the early 1960's, born from Jean's own journey to lose weight. How the company grew and prospered is definitely worth the read.
Jean battled weight her entire life and eventually won. She knows the pain of obesity and refuses to forget. Because she understands and because she truly loves people, she has spent her entire life encouraging the overweight in improving their own lives. Who wouldn't want that kind of legacy?
I've always thought that this journey is about more than simply losing weight. In this book, Jean confirms her similar belief. I hope she won't mind my sharing a sentence of two from her book, but I think her words say it all –
"The beautiful thing about losing weight, and I think probably any other kind of accomplishment that takes some sustained effort, is that it lets you know you can succeed at anything you really want to do. Now, I would never want to mislead you by suggesting that losing your weight will be easy. Nothing worthwhile in this world is ever easy, but it can be a wonderful experience."
It is an amazing journey – a long, difficult road – but one well worth the cost. I am rediscovering that person inside me that can do anything she sets her mind to. When I win my battle, I hope God gives me a similar opportunity to help and encourage others.
My thanks to a beautiful lady.
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