The fact that you're not the best, doesn't mean you shouldn't be proud

The 2018 World Cup ended with a victory for France and Croatia taking the 2nd place. Even though they lost, Croatian people were so overwhelmed by the succes of their team, that they didn't care that they lost, advancing to the finals was a huge shock for them to begin with. It might even be that Croatians appreciated their 2nd place more than France appreciated their win. The final match took place during my stay in Croatia so I had a chance to visit the fan-zone full of Croatian and French people. After the match the fans showed no hostility towards each other, in fact both nationalities cheered together. I think that this shows that even though we might not be the best at something, the only thing that matters is how much work you had to put into this thing and whether you can truly appreciate it.