Stick-to-it-ivity

Stick-to-it-ivity is a term coined by Mel Torme in his song of the same name written for the 1948 Walt Disney movie So Dear to My Heart.  The show is an inspirational tale about a boy who raises a black lamb and enters it in the competition at the fair.  The show also featured Lavender Blue and another inspirational ditty, It’s Whatcha Do With Whatcha Got.

I don’t remember much about the movie – I was only six years old when it came out – but that term has stuck with me over the years.  It speaks to the importance of perseverance  against all odds – says that you can never lose if you never quit.

If there ever was an example of stick-to-it-ivity, this is it:

When we had an ice storm in early March of last year, our Saucer Magnolia already had several blooms open.  Those blossoms froze and turned black, but they never fell off.  The buds that were not yet open at the time of the freeze opened normally and eventually dropped, leaves opened and fell in their proper seasons, but almost a year after they froze, those dead blossoms continue to cling to the tree.

I’m not sure why they’re still hanging in there.  If they’re making a point, that point escapes me.  Still, I have to admire their stick-to-it-ivity.