"I have offended God and man that my work did not rise to the level it should have."  -Leondardo Da Vinci's dying lament

What do Leonardo Da Vinci, Rush Limbaugh, and Medal of Honor recipient Dakota Meyer have in common?  Two things:  Unsurpassed success.  And the haunting feeling of being a failure.

That's not to say they're totally wrong.  Da Vinci didn't finish lots of paintings, including what was perhaps his finest Battle of Anghiari.

Rush didn't convince tens of millions of people to reject socialism and hyper-regulation.

Dakota Meyer didn't save the four men he promised to.

But I hope, particularly this time of year, that all of us who have failed are able to ask, "But was I good?"  And if the answer is yes, we should take a respite from guilt.  

Merry Christmas.

"The beauty of doing nothing is that you can do it perfectly. Only when you do something is it almost impossible to do it without mistakes. Therefore people who are contributing nothing to society except their constant criticisms can feel both intellectually and morally superior."  -Thomas Sowell