you have my word.

As I sit here on the deck of the family cottage with no one else around for a while, I was trying to plow through some work to make the most of the time I was given to be alone. As a break from the work stuff, I surfed. It’s how you pick up all those tidbits of inane knowledge that makes my wife shake her head with some of the things I know about.

Anyways I viewed a couple of videos by Richard Robbins. And there was a less than 2 minute clip of one of his presentations. But it was a good one. He was talking about the influence his father had on his life ( one I hope that I have on my daughter’s) and how his father gave him some advice as he was working for him at one of the family’s gas stations one summer. Richard didn’t do something his father asked him to and when confronted, he simply said he didn’t have enough time. His father, like all of us, know this wasn’t true. So he told him that in life you’ll never produce excuses and results. You gotta pick  Either your life will be about excuses or results. He went on to talk about one of the greatest qualities of a person or an employee is when they say they are going to do something, that you don’t have to worry about it again because you know it will be done.

I was thinking that this really goes back to the “old fashioned” quality of being true to your word. Just hearing myself say that made me feel that it seems like it has been so long since I heard it from anyone. You have my word. It’s kind of an honour thing. It is based on your reputation – not your brand, or your standard, but your reputation. It’s who you are as a person. It is something to be honoured in the face of time or money or the next best thing. It is following through on your commitment to a higher cause. In the age of next and faster and what’s in it for me, it is becoming more and more of a faded idea. I see it in the people that are looking for work. I see it in the next generation of teenagers. I see it by just walking the streets.

Everyday as I think about what kind of dad I want to be and what kind of values I want my daughter to live by, this one would have to be near the top of the list. Call it integrity. Call it Accountability  Call it Follow Through. It is about putting in an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay and just doing what you say you are going to do. Be someone that others can count on. Be someone you can count on to be respect ful, industrious and successful. 

11.16.92

the warrior's paces were slow
confident yet humbled
one by one
they led him to his
hallowed solitude
his place to which he could take
no one
for there were no directions to follow
no maps to read, no landmarks to
remember
Inside was brilliant darkness
incredible warmth, deathly cold
it was here where he truly learned
sword and shield, unsheathed and laid down
left for the protection by the gods from
which they were bestowed
there was no need for them here
there was no protection to be offered
from them
only courage honesty and virtue
weapons which could not be forged
with tools and fire
but which must be dug from the plains of uncertainty
discovered, uncovered, and polished to
excellence
for perfection exists only in vanity
now is the time for the next lesson
a lesson perhaps in equality, patience,
water, speed, hate, destruction, power,
death
as he sat visions soon joined him
they spoke silent words and saw
through broken eyes
they sat with him feasting
telling him stories of music and youth
the feasting turned to dancing....

11.07.92

i servve no master told the warrior
how can that be?
i have chosen no to
that cannot be chosen
no, not by all. but i have too chosen this
by what right?
by the right that is
i know of no such right, who told you of this?
it was not told  it was shown
by whom?
whom? one does not learn from equals. to learn true lessons one must go to superiors
but you are such a great warrior i have known no other as you. did you learn from a god?
my god has helped me learn some things, yes, but my teachers were many
will they teach me?
they will teach anyone as that is their purpose
take me to them?
you are in their presence. many are here
i do not understand
i must leave but i shall return
you cannot leave now. when are you returning?
with the coming of a light in a time long enough to be remembered yet short enough to be forgotten

fast times

the closing of another year is close at hand...and it will be a difficult one it seems. things are catching up....nothing that wasn't expected. but its the time to close them up and be able to move on fresh once it is put to bed with some embarrassment and shame, for knowing better and just not taking the time to keep up on the things that you need to keep up on...after all, is it not one of the two certainties in life?? 

and so must begin a new outlook and "strategy" on how things need to be done. i think it really sunk in when a few weeks ago, that age old idea of creating a 5 year plan saw the end of the plan with me being 50...that was a stunner! there is no way i could be 50 in only 5 years. what the hell?? I was just 30....wasn't I? But how is it that Scotty has been gone for a year and a half tomorrow....don't blink, because you will miss your life. you know it day to day but you don't really believe it until you get a punch in the face with something.

life is insane...and long....and short....and hard.....and good....and sad....and ecstatic...and tough.....and cool....and difficult.....and fun...but it is happening....every second of every day....do you know where you are (shout to matty :) ).  do others....what will be left when you are gone. will you be remembered? what will you have contributed, taught, bestowed, made a difference with?

10.25.92

the warrior listened
the words were different
the meaning was familiar
why?
that is the way
not mine, not yours
to understand, you cannot think
ask again
it is not selfish cold wrong lonely mean
it is selfless warm right comforting kind
ask again
our roles are given to us to be chosen
we encounter one another
always at the right time
but usually at the wrong
wht wont you walk with me?
ask again
that path is on fire
i dont see fire
i know

09-28-92

they come they go
new kid in town
will they still love you
when you're not around

brisk autumn night
the sky is black
and white
and grey
the wind dances around
you
warming yet chilling
surrounding yet emptying

the time has stopped
put away in a box of white gold
closed but not locked

the warrior continues on
he must

we are almost at a wrap....another year. poof. gone. did i get better? do more? support? surprise? make the world a little better somehow? id like to think so in some small way...its been a year of change, of new adventures, of loss, of gain. taking on more to push some limits, with hopes of some greater success and prosperity. 2012 is coming in with an elevated emphasis on making a presence known....making a difference...learning, helping, doing......elevating the company to a higher standard and position in the industry through more gigs, more information and more involvement....same for the owner. this is the year to be a disruptor. a game changer. Push my potential....for me, for the girls, for kahuna. Your time here could be 47.36 years or it could just last another month. Live it like it was a month and kick some ass...a blaze of glory...live like you were dying, cuz, really.....