I leave y'all's butts for a few days, and I come back to read THIS business 'bout luck being the biggest piece!
Boyd, hunnie, THROW THAT LUCK CRAP OUT YO' MIND! NOW!
YA HEAR ME?
(Luck plays a part, but it ain't the biggest part!)
Eubie Blake (do a search) was born in 1883. He was a [black, negro, african-american, colored, - whatever the hell the term of favor is today] man who was responsible for writing a whole bunch of the songs that most Americans can hear a few bars of, and name. E.g., "I'm Just Wild About Harry."
Anyway, Johnny Carson had Blake on one night, and after a really delightful period of jokes, homespun wisdom and just all-around good interaction, Johnny said to Eubie, "Eubie, I've known you for several years now, and you're always in a good mood, always happy! How do you manage to be 'up' all the time?"
Eubie replied "Walp, it's easy, Johnny."
"See, when Ah gits up in th' mornin,' Ah has a choice! Ah c'n be happy, or Ah c'n be unhappy.
"Ah jes' chooses to be happy!"
Now, I don't want to editorialize this to death, but, you gotta know that between 1883 and 1983 when he died, there was a period of time when luck for Eubie had a 95 to 5 chance of being bad. Yet, his accomplishments have left an indelible mark on the music history of this country - whether or not the country is big enough (or sufficiently educated enough yet) to acknowledge him. All because, I think, Eubie "choosed" to be happy.
Think about this: It's really funny how often luck and skill wind up in the same place at the same time, ain't it?