This book offers stories of perseverance from nine authors - with different ages, gender, race, and faiths. Each author shared a unique experience, or story, about pushing on and overcoming. A lady by the river, someone hurting and broken, inspired this book, but the stories are for everyone because life has so many ups and downs. One of the ways we succeed in persevering is by connecting with others and this book offers human connection with the hope that you might be fortified. Some authors offer direct perseverance tips while others provide narrative for us to extract what we choose. Mark noted how companionship and patience helped him recover from divorce, grief, and job displacement. Mabel showed us that determination to work hard, with patience and integrity, helped her to find rich contentment while passionately pursuing the art of writing. Ana processed her past with us, showing us how she turned pain and mistreatment into motivation, to then later dispense grace from a place of strength. Jeffrey shared culture rich contemplations and noted that his relationship with God filled his biggest void. He also reminded us that humans are always growing. Mahesh brought us picturesque places from his past, while sharing how he opened his mind to see humanity with a loving heart and learned what it means to let it be. Chad, who found meaning from the meaningless, used a fictional piece to remind us of the simple beauty of friendship and that we can keep our breath and mind steady no matter what happens. Sherri noted that despite struggling, we could still find fulfillment. She kept planting those roses and leaving them behind for others, gripping contentment while her roots were uprooted. Kristen shared about the human tendency to numb and escape, while pointing out that contentment comes not from the absence of stress, but from learning to embrace challenge while strategizing and changing our response. Yvette ended with thoughts about self-care and increasing self-awareness, while noting that anger, regret, and comparing can interfere with persevering. She also reminded us that we need a customized approach for helping others and for dealing with our own trials. Life changes, and so do we, which is why different situations might need different strategies. Challenging circumstances are guaranteed to come and go, making the perseverance discussion continuously relevant. There is a melting pot vibe found within these pages and this book will add spice and flavor to your life, just like seasoning is used to enrich food. However, even with all of this variety, we have the shared theme of pushing on and we hope it encourages and inspires all who read.