Learning to Walk Again

Learning to walk again.

Getting up from where you had fallen. Brushing the ashes off your pants. Combing the twigs out of your hair. Shaking your head three times to finally clear it.

Learning to try again.

Having been beaten down by some crushing defeat. Sitting dazed on the side of a secondary road, wondering how you would possibly rise. When every single star in the night sky seemed to have it out for you. When even the Sun that morning decided to turn away.

When every betting man and woman in Vegas laid odds that you would finally give up and go home, back to the job you have been complaining about for years. Back to the back of the classroom, to sit with the troublemakers and other forgotten fools.

Well, you’re not alone.

I’ve been there. And I’ve seen that place.

It’s long and brittle. But it can be overcome.

It will be.

And I'm betting my money on you.

That where they see mountains, you see molehills.

Where they see defeat, you simply see delayed delight.

And that, right here, in your perfect little moment of truth, you will find the will and the want to rise.

To raise your arms and your eyes to the very tips of the trees.

And yell in defiance.

And then you will walk again.

Yes, slowly at first. And you may stumble and fall.

But, soon, you'll gain your gait.

And your legs will stride.

Then, my good friend, I will watch, I will smile, and then I will cheer.

As, once again, you begin to run.

And We Will Know You By Your Candy

Tell me what kind of candy you give out for Halloween, and I’ll tell you who you are.

I’m already anticipating our kids returning from trick or treating, worn down and sugared up. My wife will help them organize their candy into piles.

And we’ll know the people, as we know the candy.

Regular size candy bars – Snickers. Almond Joy. Those who hand these out are strong and confident.

King size candy bars – Yes, these people may be pretentious, but they will automatically be added to our Christmas card list.

Chocolate knockoffs – the candy equivalent of a fake Coach purse. As you get closer, you notice the difference. Snicklers. Two Musketeers. And once you bite down, you’ll know the person handing them out is just as fake as the candy.

Candy cigarettes – Anything that has my kids asking for mentholated can’t be good.

Hard candies – Either give out candy or don’t. But don’t mock us.

Wax bottles with colored liquid –These people should just give out candles. At least we can floss with the wick afterwards.

Circus peanuts – Never trust a food called something it isn’t. Or the person who gives it out.

Fruit – There is a special place reserved in my mind for these people. It’s dark, damp, and filled with spiders.

Pennies – If you’re going to give money, give singles. Otherwise, take your precious pennies and BUY SOME REAL CANDY!

Remember, what you give out this Halloween is a reflection of who you are. So, know that we’ll be out there. Waiting to ring your doorbell. To see if you’ll pass the most fundamental test of humanity.

Giving out good candy on Halloween.

Yes, we’ll be waiting.

And watching.

What if you had one day to live?

What if you had one day to live?

We watched the “Source Code” with Jake Gyllenhaal over the weekend. It’s a powerful science fiction thriller that has a man living the same eight minutes repeatedly to solve a crime. I know the premise has been done before – but I’ve never seen it done this way.

In the movie, Jake asks his girlfriend what she would do if she knew she only had one minute left to live.

But, I’m willing to give you more time.

What if you had one day – and knew it?

What would you do?

Of course, that awareness would make things really clear, really fast.
It takes you right where you need to go.

Think about it. For just a moment, really think about it.

Someone tells you that you have one day left.

Your mind starts to whirl. Your throat closes up. The panic crushes in. Your loves, wants and failures flash through your mind. And then you realize that, if you just keep standing there thinking about it, you’ll be wasting time.

Precious, present time.

So you…

What?

And you…

Where?

What do you do? And where do you go? And what do you do when you get there?
Or do you stay exactly where you are?

Well, know this.

Whatever you do, wherever you go, whomever you talk to, and whatever you say, right there is your truth. What you want most of all. Or what you most need to make right.

Now, of course, it’s very unlikely that you only have one day left to live.

But what if you did?

What if you did?

A Curmudgeon Fights Back

I slipped and fell into the generation gap.

I'm 47. Sometimes, I feel half that.

But, lately, double.

Because, whether it's my new reading glasses, or the fact that I actually injured my shoulder playing Wii baseball and my elbow by mowing the lawn, I've realized that I am getting older.

I know, I know. We all get older. But, for some reason, I thought I had a special dispensation, a "Get Out of Aging" card. And with getting older, I've also been feeling a growing want for things of the past.

Like taking pictures with cameras, where we had to actually take the film to be processed, and wait several days. That distinct anticipation as we opened the envelope.

Now, my pictures are sitting on my phone and computer, and I can't get fingerprints on them.

And newspapers and books. Yes, they’re still around, but I feel them going. I'm at a wake, commenting on how life-like they look in the coffin, while hearing Kindle's and iPad’s heavy footsteps behind me.

And younger people don't make phone calls anymore . Instead, they text, and tweet, and like. And, through it all, punctuation is going the way of the leisure suit. So is waiting – in this age of 24X7 everything.

I know I sound like a curmudgeon. But, today, this curmudgeon begins to fight back.

Today, I'm going to grab my newspaper, books, cassettes, VHS tapes, and classic black and white movies. And I’m going to hold them up high.

So that, what once was old, will become new again.

I will influence instead of being influenced.

For I have fallen.

But I can get up.