Humble Pie

Some are in it for the money or fame,

They make it seem that life is a game,

That you can’t do something,

For nothing,

That everything they do,

Comes down to a price,

You shouldn’t need anything,

To do something nice.

What did we learn,

When we were young?

Before we could talk,

Before we could run,

There’s some things out there,

That should be done,

With no whining, no crying,

No wishing it done.

What am I really,

Trying to say?

The nice things you do,

At night, in the day,

Should not always be,

Along with the pay,

Sometimes its time,

To be humble today.

Although it may,

Feel good to brag,

When life is a bore,

When life is a drag,

But all of that glory,

Has a price tag,

Where in the future,

You’ll pay a price,

With the friends that you lost,

For not being nice.

To do great things,

For nothing in return,

You’ll have a great life,

With all the things that you learn,

And when in time,

The tide does turn,

Finding a person who’ll help you,

Won’t be a concern.

Strength of Compassion

Because a strong man, who has known power all his life, will lose respect for that power.  But a weak man knows the value of strength.  And knows compassion.

Those are the inspiring words that I heard when I went to go see Captain America at the movies yesterday.  I can really relate to the quote, and I believe many of you can too.  We’ve all seen someone that supposedly has everything and we’ve wanted what they have.  But then if we look deeper into their life, we realize they are very arrogant and take what they have for granted.  Celebrities have thrown their life away to drug use and criminal actions.  They have become full of themselves and have begun to believe that they are the center of attention at all times.  I don’t think anyone wants to become like that.  Here’s to the weak men and women out there that society has looked past, the men and women I believe to be the strongest of all, in their heart.
 
I am physically a weak man with my ever-weakening muscles.  I’ve had time to look at the world in a unique way.  I’ve been through many situations where I cannot do what other people can; situations where I had to realize that I physically could not do something, when mentally I believed I could do it.  It is very hard to make that realization without looking down on yourself, which is what I struggled with.  I saw others doing, what I had struggled to do, rather easily.  This, in the end, made me have a stronger compassion and more gratitude for what I could do.

I may not be able to run a mile, but I can be the mental force behind someone running in a marathon.  I may not be able to drive a car, but I can help give driving directions.  I may not be able to play a sport, but I can still watch them with my friends.  Taking gratitude for these things I could do made me stronger in my heart.  Arrogance comes from not being grateful for what you have, so I was able to avoid it as much as I could.  But really, is there anyone out there that is truly weak or truly strong?

We each have things that we are stronger at along with things that we are weaker at.  By finding the middle ground between our strengths and weaknesses, we can be grateful for our life and give compassion to others that may share our weaknesses.  There are some weaknesses we can never truly get rid of, but those are the weaknesses that teach us lessons and make us better people.  No one is perfectly strong either; we all have something inside of us holding us back and slowly pulling us down.  Life is dependent on a balancing act, where we use our strengths to counteract our weaknesses and use our weaknesses to counteract our strengths.  Too much weakness is a bad thing and too much strength is also a bad thing, so try hard to find that equilibrium.

Blank Paper

A blank paper before you,

What should you write?

A story, a novel, a mystery, a plight,

A story of a friend you hold dear,

Or one about a thought so near,

You have all the room you ever could want,

So, go ahead, write, take this as a taunt,

I know this is something you want,

If the paper stays blank,

There is no one to thank,

You have an idea,

Just spread it around,

Maybe about living deep underground,

If the paper stays blank,

You are not alive,

Because all humans have stories,

They hold deep inside,

So let it out,

Write about it,

And you will see,

That the paper isn’t blank,

And there is you to thank.

Accepted

How it feels to be accepted,
Is something I cannot explain,
But it feels like the storm has ended,
And I’m out of the rain,
I cannot thank you enough,
For making my life less tough.

But don’t cry because of me,
My life is great as you can see,
If one day you’re feeling down,
I’ll make a smile out of that frown,
You are the first to hear the words I say,
And make me not want to go away.

If only everyone could be like you,
It would make those like me,
Want to live life through,
Don’t change,
You’re already who you should be,
Don’t change,
You already hold the key,
To a perfect life.

I hope my words make,
You think about every breath you take,
Because there are people out there,
Who have one more breath as their only care,
So I’m asking you to live,
Giving all that you can give.

Thank you for taking the time,
With all my words that rhyme,
To sit and listen to me,
You’ve changed my life, you’ll soon see,
This is only just the start,
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Do Me a Favor

Do you think the sun won’t shine?
Do you think life does not matter?
Well all that has to change,
Now its time to rearrange,
Make your life really shine,
I found a way for everything to be fine,
Just do me a favor and smile.
Do me a favor and smile,

Be happy for more than a little while,
Let me see that gleam in your eye,
To let this feeling never die,
That look upon your face,
Is really all it takes,
To change the world.

With all the bad in this world,
Its time for happiness to be unfurled,
It does not matter who you are,
You can still shine brighter than a star,
Black or white,
Straight or gay,
A smile will surely change the way,
You look at every single day.

Some of you may think,
That life will always stink,
That you have to throw your dreams away,
That happiness can never really stay,
But just think back to the time,
When a smile was not a crime,
You were only 8 years old,
And life to you was diamond and gold.
Do me a favor and smile,
Be happy for more than a little while,
Let me see that gleam in your eye,
To let this feeling never die,
That look upon your face,
Is really all it takes,
To change the world.

I’ve seen it for myself,
How a smile can change a life,
Even if it’s full of strife,
I have a disability,
Where everything is harder for me,
But then I figured out,
That happiness was the perfect way,
To a perfect life every single day,
And I wanted to scream and shout,
Tell the world what optimism was about.

And you can do the same,
Cuz life’s not about money or fame,
Not about strife or pain,
Or what in your life you can gain,
It’s about that simple look,
Upon your face,
That makes the world a better place.
Do me a favor and smile,

Be happy for more than a little while,
Let me see that gleam in your eye,
To let this feeling never die,
That look upon your face,
Is really all it takes,
To change the world.

The Unforgotten

We spend our whole life trying to make the most money, trying to move on up in the world, trying to get everything that we want. During this competition we sometimes forget who got us there in the first place and push others out of the way. In this competition there is never truly a first place, since our wants and needs forever increase. We want more money and a nice sports car and nice clothes, but do we ever want more friends or more relationships? It never really seems like that is what we are out to get, but it should be.

(These things are what make up The Unforgotten)

Today I went early in the morning to visit my nurse’s father who is 88 years old.  He is an amazing guy that has been through so much in his life.  He has made it through 4 years in World War II and years of raising his family of all daughters.  Most of his long and full life is over and there is no turning back for him.  Like most people at his age, he is slowly losing his memory and has a hard time remembering some things.  What he does remember is the truly inspirational thing, he remembers The Unforgotten.

He remembers the friendships he had over the years.  The time he spent with them is what he lived for.  They were the ones that made him laugh when the days grew dark and made him smile when sun shined.  They made him who he is today and he will never forget them.

(His friends are The Unforgotten.)

He remembers the years of marriage and raising his children from a small baby to a fully-grown adult.  He saw the beauty of life come alive when they were born.  He gave them an education that allowed them to make hundreds of friends along the way.  But most importantly, he was able to pass down his beliefs to his children and make them see life through optimistic eyes.

(His children are The Unforgotten.)

The love he gave to his wife also passed down to his children.  She brightened every single day from dawn to sunset.  She helped him take care of his family when times got rough.  She allowed him to follow his passion of singing, albeit just singing lullabies and Sinatra songs to his children.  She transformed him forever and she will never be forgotten.

(His wife is The Unforgotten.)

But his memory is falling apart for other things.  He cannot remember all of the lyrics to his favorite Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin songs that he used to sing in his youth and later on to his children.  He forgets the money he made.  He forgets what kind of car he had or how much it had cost.  He forgets about everything except friendship and love.

(So what does all this mean?)

It means that the truly important things in life are friendship and love, nothing more than those two short words.  It means that you should not always try to strike it rich and forget about creating and forming relationships with the amazing people around you.  It means that fame does not replace a need for love and friendship.  Near the end of your life, fame will not be important, money will not be important, prosperity will not be important.  What will truly be important will be the children you raised, the love you shared, and the friendships that changed your life.  These things can never be forgotten, no matter what financial state you are in or how bad life gets.  These things are The Unforgotten.

(“Money will not change the world, in the end it will only be paper, but love and friendship can change the world, and can never be reduced to nothing.”)

Decision-Free Day

Our society revolves around planning.  Planning to go to the grocery store.  Planning to go to the mall.  Planning to go anywhere.  What’s next, planning when to breath in and out?  We never stop for a second to admire the beauty all around us or do things that we really want to do.  It’s not the end of the world to stop planning for one day and go on a trip to a new or exciting place.  You could go a mile down the road or hours away going wherever the road may take you.  Life is a highway, so why not ride it all night long?

I’ve had so many Decision-Free Days in my life so far. From monster truck shows to Washington DC, I’ve been to hundreds of cool and indescribable places, too many to name.  Below I will describe one of my DFD’s and hopefully inspire you to take a break from all the stress and pain of life and go on your own Decision-Free Day adventure.

Right before I sat down to write this blog entry, I had returned from a 6-hour Decision-Free Day with my nurse with a story that you would think belongs in a week trip.  The night before I had called my aide from high school and asked him if he would be home the next morning.  He texted me back and said that he would.  So the next morning I left all technology and stress behind at 8:30 in the morning and took a half hour ride to his house with my nurse.  He showed me his house, his pool, and his cat and two dogs.  The three of us sat by the pool and ate potato chips with sour cream and drank some soda.  But more importantly, we sat back and talked about our lives and reminisced on the good times we had in high school together.  He could have not been happier to see me and we spent about an hour playing War with playing cards next to his pool.  Then the three of us went on a walk around his community and he told me everything about his neighbors and how the houses had changed over the years.  My nurse and I were going to leave right after our walk was done, but then I had an idea that literally just popped into my head.  But unlike I, and probably many of you, usually do, I listened to that idea and went with it.

That took us to the diner about a mile down the road where I had fish and chips, my friend had a grilled cheese with tomato, and my nurse had a chicken sandwich.  We continued to reminisce and talk about life during our lunch and had a great day.  But yet again, the trip did not end there like it normally would have with all the woes of life.  My nurse and I followed my friend and continued another mile or two down the road to a rustic Main Street in an old-fashioned town.  The bridge that we crossed overlooked a waterfall and two water wheels churning the water.  My nurse and I found a parking spot on the street and took a stroll down the sidewalk looking at the shops that we passed.  My friend told me about how all the shops and restaurants had changed and about what used to be there.  After walking up and down the street two times we all decided to stop and get some ice cream.  I got a flavor called Lobster Tracks with chocolate and red candies and we sat on a bench and yet again talked about life.

This trip made me wonder why everyone spends their days whining that there is nothing to do when there is really a world of excitement waiting for them outside their small, secluded world. It also made me see how fast the world around us can change and how we should take in everything before it disappears from view.  Look at how simple everything I did was; it was not like I had decided to go skydiving or anything like that.  I had only let my mind and the road take control of my day and turned just a simple visit into an extraordinary and memorable journey.

So take a few hours out of your day, call up that friend you have not seen in years, and go wherever the road may take you.  Follow through with any idea that may go through your head and that idea will take you to many other places you never thought you would go.  Put your stressed mind and life to the side for a bit and see what the world can truly offer.