Every few years, it is such a treat to watch the Olympics. The athletes are in their prime. World peace seems a real possibility. And, maybe best of all, watching television seems like time well spent.

When I was a kid, I thought that someday I’d compete for gold. I didn’t realize then that my dreams were of the “pipe” variety. But self-delusion, like ignorance, is bliss, and in that regard I admit I had a truly blissful childhood.

After watching the mens marathon at the 1992 Barcelona games, I remember telling my grandmother that one day I’d too compete for gold in the Olympic marathon. I was serious. I can still remember our phone conversation even now.

Me: Hi grandma, are you watching the Olympics?

Grandma: Oh yes.

Me: Did you see the marathon?

Grandma: Oh yes.

Me: You know what? I think I could do that.

Grandma: You sure?

Me: Yeah, how hard can it be? I’ll put my mind to it. All you have to do is run every day. I know I can do it.

Grandma: Okay, whatever you say, John Henry. I’ll be rooting for you.

My middle name is Henry, after my great-grandfather. You might think the name John Henry (a.k.a. The Steel Driving Man) would be the perfect moniker for a future Olympian, but alas, it wasn’t.

To save you the suspense, I never became an Olympian. Sure, I could use the excuse that other things like school and work got in the way, but really, my dream died quickly because of my laziness and lack of discipline. One needs more than an interesting name to become Olympic. Discipline and steady resolve, neither of which I had, are mandatory prerequisites.

But, just because I can’t be an Olympian doesn’t mean I’ve given up going for goals. I read a good quote recently by John Wooden, UCLA’s famous basketball coach, who said: “Don’t let the things you can’t do get in the way of the things you can do.” Such good advice!

So, all of you folks out there who are struggling with unmet goals and general disappointment with your accomplishments to date, there is still time to get on track and do something great. Yes, few of us will become Olympians, but many of us can do awesome things.

Just recently, in fact, I read about how Meredith Strang Burgess, who runs a successful ad agency in Portland, finished the debut Tri for a Cure triathlon held two weekends ago in Portland.

A well-known cancer survivor in the Portland area, she is a true inspiration and as great a role model as the newly crowned greatest Olympian ever, Michael Phelps. Burgess may have finished nearly last in the race, but place doesn’t matter. She is a winner for attempting and finishing a difficult test that she had set for herself.

And you too can be great. Yes, the Olympics are focused on sporting achievements, but life is full of other tests of endurance and skill. Becoming a master gardener, completing a degree program, becoming fluent in a foreign language, or visiting all 50 states in an RV are just a few of the many great tests of one’s resolve.

And non-quantifiable goals are sometimes greater. Some of these include taking a mother-in-law to dialysis three times a week or caring for an elderly mother or father suffering from dementia. The list of potential great achievements is endless, and scripted differently for each person.

My grandmother, for one, battled mental illness her whole life. During her funeral last month, her four children remembered her as someone who ran the race as well as she could, despite her inner battles. My grandmother never won an Olympic medal. In fact she never even earned her driver’s license. But she was an inspiration because she bravely battled through pain each and every day.

Like sports, where athletes have to train themselves to handle pain and suffering, life is full of challenges and not for the timid of heart. But the key to finishing well is to never let up on the intensity. Burgess, my grandmother and Phelps are all inspirations in their own way. It’s our job to choose our own goals, and like them, go for our own gold.

John Balentine, who lives in Windham, will brag now about hiking the entire

Appalachian Trail, his greatest (and hopefully not last) achievement.