It is a choice we get to make. It is the right one. Gratitude is just better.
You deserve so much better
Today on my lunch break I took a few minutes and flipped through my Facebook app on my iPhone. There wasn’t much going on, but one post grabbed my attention. A lady I knew from high school posted the video link to “Stay” by Sugarland. I made a note to watch it when I got home. I knew the song, but had never seen the video. Whoa. That one rips your heart when you watch it.
I had a whole bunch of thoughts after I watched this one:
One, no woman needs to go through this. You deserve much better. You may not see it, but you do. If you are in this situation, there is very little chance it will get better. Men who do this to women are not worth the tears or the heartbreak. You were created in the image of a God who loves you. Living like this is beneath your dignity.
Two, I love the portion of the song where she decides to get up and stand up for herself. The look on her face when she makes the choice is awesome. It is heart wrenching, but it awesome. You see the fire ignite in her mind. Though the pain of it would crush her, she stands up and declares that she doesn’t have to live that way. There is a long journey ahead, but that was a great first step.
Three, any man who does this to a woman needs to grow up. Man up, make a choice, and take care of the one you choose. Real men don’t cheat. I have been in love with my wife for almost 22 years now. I don’t want another woman. I would be stupid to throw away everything I have built for something as dumb. I told my wife before we were married that I was all in. No games. She has my heart completely.
Lastly, this song is a reminder to cherish the woman I love, who loves me in return. I am forever grateful
I will persist until I succeed.
I just finished a wonderful book by Og Mandino called The Greatest Salesman in the World. It was first printed in 1967. I think I can safely say it is just as awesome today as the day it was released.
The book is a story set in the first century which is centered around Mr. Mandino’s philosophy of success, namely in the arena of sales. It is a very easy read (I actually got the audiobook off of iTunes) and is well worth the time. If you haven’t read it, do! Ok, now that the commercial is over…on to the subject of the post.
One of the points of his philosophy is this: I will persist until I succeed. It made me think about a lot of the goals I have had in my life. About dreams that I have had that have or haven’t come about. I have been guilty of quitting on more than one occasion. My reasons? Things got too hard. It wasn’t fun anymore. There was something new and shiny that drew my attention. Whatever the excuse was, I did more quitting that I would have liked. With this mantra as my guide what would have been accomplished?
Now, I have accomplished many things over the years that I am proud of. Many of them bring me joy to this day. But, many of these things have been at random. What if I had been focused on specific goals? To persist until I succeeded?
Mr. Mandino was writing his philosophy to be applied to the area of sales. The character in the book had focus and therefore accomplished much. There was a definite goal in the character’s mind and he was going to persist until he found success. Have you ever wanted something that much? So much that you would do anything you could to attain it? To know that no matter what came at you, your mantra would be ‘I will persist until I succeed?’
One line from the chapter says this: I will try, and try, and try again. Each obstacle I will consider as a mere detour to my goal and a challenge to my profession…so long as there is breath in my, that long will I persist.
What goals do you have that you could apply this mantra to? How would things be different if you chose to say boldly ‘I will persist until I succeed?’
The principles of the book are timeless. The story that conveys these principles is excellent as well. If you haven’t read this one, check it out.
Backlash
I have to be honest. I know I wrote this. I have no idea when…it is my stab at fiction. Here we go.
What do you do when you hit the bottom? When all of the things you knew to be certain are pulled out from under you in one swift jerk? When life as you knew it, and loved it for that fact, is over? These questions plague me. They give me no rest.
Trisha was my life. She was all a man could want in a woman and more. A friend. A lover. A pillar of strength. A place of refuge. No obstacle was too tall while she loved me. No force to great to stop the man she believed in, simply because she believed.
They knew this, of course. They knew she was my weakness, but I would never call her that. She was too good for that. But, they took her to get to me. They took the future that we had together and the crushed it into dust. For what? I became more than they anticipated. I posed a threat to their comfort. They assumed by taking her, they would crack me…it ain’t gonna be that easy.
An imposing man sat behind a large desk. One couldn’t pinpoint which was more imposing: the wrinkled face with a cigar hanging out of his mouth, or the 9mm semi automatic pistol sitting on the desk beside him. No other crime lord was as respected or as feared as he.
“Have we cleared up all of our problems?”
“Almost, sir.”
“Almost?” The sound of anger rose in his throat. The scowl deepened as he folded his hands over in front of his mouth. His name was Leoni. Giuseppe Leoni.
“Sanderson’s house was burned as you instructed. All occupants were shot as you told us to do. Sanderson, his wife, and two house guests. Our man on the inside was there when the fire department sifted through the ashes. All four were shot, only three bodies were found. Sanderson is missing, but couldn’t have gotten far. He was shot through the heart. I watched him go down myself.”
“We can’t afford to work on assumptions, Mr. Elias.”
“That is true sir, but Sanderson was a failed project. He could not have withstood a point blank shot to the heart. No one could.”
“I admire your certainty Mr. Elias, but I do not share it. Failed project or none, find me Sanderson’s body. If you do not, it will be your life that takes his place.” Leoni drove a closed fist down into the top of his desk as he spoke those words. “You are dismissed.”
Leoni rose from his desk. His windows looked out over the city. Somewhere, he was certain Michael Sanderson was waiting. A failed project…that was yet to be seen
Mercury City was a thriving metropolis. Business was good. So good in fact, decent people with any brains stayed home in the evenings, because crime was just as good as business. Muggings, rape, and assault were common place. Men like Leoni thrived off of this. The public simply didn’t know it.
His empire was built on the façade of hard work and dignity.
I love it.
I have been playing Nintendo with my boy of late. I told him today that I have been playing Mario Bros. for over 30 years. I loved it when I was a kid, but nothing like now. Playing games with this boy is where it is at.
David Willis 