I woke up this morning thinking about all the good that comes out of having kids and living the life I do. Then I yelled at my kids once or twice for what amounted to, well, stuff kids do and are expected to do. It led me to recognize how differently I can perceive reality based on whether I’m deep in it or rising above it. My youngest reminds me constantly to rise above hate (of course, that’s the motto of his favorite wrestler, so there’s that) and I intend to. However, when I’m in the thick of dealing with the nutty personality of my kids (3 boys is a lot. A lot a lot), I can’t see the forest for the trees.
I think the key to recognizing how valuable and special life is has everything to do with taking a moment to reflect. It has been weeks since I did that in any substantial way, and as a result I spent a few weeks lamenting about how crappy my situations are and how much stuff there is to do. On the other hand, I could be dead, homeless, or just hanging in there. I could lack talent, or be frightfully ugly, or just be an asshole. There are some many terrible and negative paths that life flows towards and very few and narrow paths that flow towards goodness. I’ve been blessed to be on the path towards goodness and that’s why it is important to me to do something with the opportunities I have.
Heck, if I don’t, I don’t know what is going to become of my little ones. My kids watch me for ideas about what to do. I want them to see a man who is strong, proud, and above all else, driven.