Awe, this is personal today. Today is my sons first day in the Navy. Somewhere up in Chicago, is a young man dressed in a Navy uniform, going through training. Since I spent 8 1/2 years of active duty as an officer, I know that this is the best place for any young person to be. It will teach him so much more about our wonderful country than a history book can tell. He is in fact defending our constitution and will be more informed than most of our youth in America.
But, this post isn't about the promotion of the military. It's more about a mothers never ending love. When he was young, every birthday eve, I would shed tears of sorrow for both my son and daughter. Tears of sorrow because I would no longer have a five year old, etc... In the morning there was joy welcoming in the new age for the next year. They were growing into beautiful people, looking forward to what the new year would bring.
Today my thoughts were on these moments and I was musing on what he might be going through his first day. New haircut, new clothes, mess hall food, new bunk mates, new instructors and of course, realizing that he is in fact at the bottom of the totem pole. There were new people in charge of him and not his captain mommy. (Captain mommy was a joke between my children and I; when times warranted their undivided attention, I would tell them "This is Captain Devo speaking to you!") A new way of waking up to life. No more rolling over in bed and not showing up for work. People who won't put up with his excuses for being late to work. He will discover what Duty, Honor and Country stands for. Perhaps he will have a renewed respect for his mom? lol
Never the less, I mentioned to a new mother with child about my sons new quest and she said a few words that brought tears to my eyes. "You must be emotional about this?" Then the tears swelled in my eyes. Yes, he was still my baby boy! I'm very proud of him. I have no doubt in my mind, that they will fine tune what I started. God speed my fine young man, God speed. I love you...
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
Little ditty on depression
Life is about feeling good. When you are feeling any emotion that makes you feel bad, stop and think about what would make you feel better. There are always two sides to every subject and feeling.
You might not feel good that you are short of cash/one side, however, you can feel better thinking at least payday is in two days/other side. Flipping how you feel about a subject can change how long you stay in a negative state of mind and unhappiness.
One side of a subject: There was a time when I lost my best friend (my step mom), my partner left me during the time she passed away and I was left to deal with a failing business that we shared. To add further to my pain, my father passed away too. All my friends were concerned about how I was going to handle all the stress. Even though I went through a time of mourning which is only natural, I refused to allow myself to stay in a constant state of depression. So, I reached for better feeling thoughts to recover.
The other side of the subject: I didn't have to worry about my parents anymore, because, I knew where they were at all the times. Funny I know. Additionally, even though the business failed, I no longer had to worry about all the details, my struggles were gone. It left me with more time to focus on my happiness and my children.
We have a friend who is in a constant state of depression. When we hear from her, all she talks about is how bad she feels. Regardless of all the counseling she receives and the medicines she is on...she stays in a constant state of self destruction. No matter what advice anyone has to offer, she refuses to consider her options. The only person who can really help her, is herself.
We only get to live life once...so it's a shame to waste all our time being miserable. How long do you want to stay in an unhappy state of mind?
You might not feel good that you are short of cash/one side, however, you can feel better thinking at least payday is in two days/other side. Flipping how you feel about a subject can change how long you stay in a negative state of mind and unhappiness.
One side of a subject: There was a time when I lost my best friend (my step mom), my partner left me during the time she passed away and I was left to deal with a failing business that we shared. To add further to my pain, my father passed away too. All my friends were concerned about how I was going to handle all the stress. Even though I went through a time of mourning which is only natural, I refused to allow myself to stay in a constant state of depression. So, I reached for better feeling thoughts to recover.
The other side of the subject: I didn't have to worry about my parents anymore, because, I knew where they were at all the times. Funny I know. Additionally, even though the business failed, I no longer had to worry about all the details, my struggles were gone. It left me with more time to focus on my happiness and my children.
We have a friend who is in a constant state of depression. When we hear from her, all she talks about is how bad she feels. Regardless of all the counseling she receives and the medicines she is on...she stays in a constant state of self destruction. No matter what advice anyone has to offer, she refuses to consider her options. The only person who can really help her, is herself.
We only get to live life once...so it's a shame to waste all our time being miserable. How long do you want to stay in an unhappy state of mind?
Friday, February 12, 2010
Winter Games Death
What a tragic day for the Winter Olympics...Nodar Kumaritashvili was killed during a practice run on the Luger track. I have many thoughts to consider about this tragedy and I will do my best to explain my position through a personal experience.
While raising money for handicapped children on a haunted hay ride, I became seriously injured. Oh it was my fault and luckily, unlike the Olympics, no one else was subjected to my stupidity.
I opted to have two aerial scenes where I would come from above to frighten the hay riders. On one scene, I had several rather bad practice runs that resulted in quick decisions and a huge failure on my part to recognize safety issues. There were several fast passes, a near miss of a broken tree that almost went up my spine. With a new repelling rope and the wrong gloves; too cheap to buy the real ones...I made one last attempt before night fall. I came down way too fast again, only this time, my leg snapped and it was lying beside me. In shock, I reached down and set my leg back in place.
Why did I ignore the warning signs? Was it ego? Who knows! But, the question that comes to me is this; "with so many professionals watching the practice runs fail several times before this young man was killed; why did they not raise the caution flag and re-evaluate the track?" Unlike me, they had many people available to discuss the issue. Safety should always be the number one concern for the designers of these courses and events.
Sure you will have accidents as a result of the inherent dangers associated with all sports. However, do we need to add to the inherent dangers for the sake of saving money by cutting corners or simply failing to stop the practice runs to evaluate the situation? Very sad that no one made this important decision. Moving forward: My heart and prayers go out to his family, friends, team mates and coaches. Perhaps this will be a lesson not forgotten.
While raising money for handicapped children on a haunted hay ride, I became seriously injured. Oh it was my fault and luckily, unlike the Olympics, no one else was subjected to my stupidity.
I opted to have two aerial scenes where I would come from above to frighten the hay riders. On one scene, I had several rather bad practice runs that resulted in quick decisions and a huge failure on my part to recognize safety issues. There were several fast passes, a near miss of a broken tree that almost went up my spine. With a new repelling rope and the wrong gloves; too cheap to buy the real ones...I made one last attempt before night fall. I came down way too fast again, only this time, my leg snapped and it was lying beside me. In shock, I reached down and set my leg back in place.
Why did I ignore the warning signs? Was it ego? Who knows! But, the question that comes to me is this; "with so many professionals watching the practice runs fail several times before this young man was killed; why did they not raise the caution flag and re-evaluate the track?" Unlike me, they had many people available to discuss the issue. Safety should always be the number one concern for the designers of these courses and events.
Sure you will have accidents as a result of the inherent dangers associated with all sports. However, do we need to add to the inherent dangers for the sake of saving money by cutting corners or simply failing to stop the practice runs to evaluate the situation? Very sad that no one made this important decision. Moving forward: My heart and prayers go out to his family, friends, team mates and coaches. Perhaps this will be a lesson not forgotten.
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