As December 7th rolls around, I have a lot of personal things on my mind, this year more than ever, so I thought I'd share.
For one, December 7th is an infamous day. It's Pearl Harbor Day, and for someone who was there during the 50th anniversary commemorations, it's a sobering reminder of the occupation I once had and still hold dearly: that of a Sailor, born to sea and ready to defend. But it's not all guts and glory, not even close. War is not great or fun or even Call of Duty. It's a messy business, and I think all too often people tend to forget that - sometimes intentionally so. War means breaking things and hurting people, sometimes permanently. We cannot afford to lose sight of that, or else we are no better than the ones who glorify it for their own means.
Second, it's both my father's birthday...and fifty years after that, the day he died as well. As I've reached that own point in my life, it's made me think. Didn't have the greatest relationship with him, and it affected me to degrees, many of which I'd rather not talk about here, but I will say one thing: life's too hard and short to allow negativity. Don't let the toxic ones stay in your life, but don't be forever unwilling to forgive. Both ways are madness.
The third is, well, it's my ex-fiancee's birthday as well, by coincidence. See the thing above I mentioned about toxicity and forgiveness? Went double for me, as you can figure by that "ex" part. And as someone who's moved beyond that and has now been with the same woman for two decades and is close to hitting the twentieth anniversary mark? That's something else to keep in mind: keep the ones you love close. Always let them know how much you love them and how much they mean to you. And if you don't have that kind of person in your life, keep looking - they'll be there someday, it just doesn't seem like it now. But that moment will happen when you least expect it. BOOM - magic.
And lastly, never give up on your dreams. Anyone who tells you otherwise either has already given up on theirs, or is jealous of you being a dreamer. Harlan Sanders got famous in his sixties. Betty White was 51 when she was discovered by Hollywood. Morgan Freeman was 52. Those of you writing, making music, creating art, streaming, whatever it is? Don't stop, no matter how much the voices, inside or out, say "you'll never succeed." You've already beaten those voices each time you keep going. And maybe you won't be a Hollywood Legend or a Grammy winner or whatever. But you'll be a damn sight ahead of all those naysayers. And that is the best accolade of all.
As December 7th rolls around, I have a lot of personal things on my mind, this year more than ever, so I thought I'd share.
For one, December 7th is an infamous day. It's Pearl Harbor Day, and for someone who was there during the 50th anniversary commemorations, it's a sobering reminder of the occupation I once had and still hold dearly: that of a Sailor, born to sea and ready to defend. But it's not all guts and glory, not even close. War is not great or fun or even Call of Duty. It's a messy business, and I think all too often people tend to forget that - sometimes intentionally so. War means breaking things and hurting people, sometimes permanently. We cannot afford to lose sight of that, or else we are no better than the ones who glorify it for their own means.
Second, it's both my father's birthday...and fifty years after that, the day he died as well. As I've reached that own point in my life, it's made me think. Didn't have the greatest relationship with him, and it affected me to degrees, many of which I'd rather not talk about here, but I will say one thing: life's too hard and short to allow negativity. Don't let the toxic ones stay in your life, but don't be forever unwilling to forgive. Both ways are madness.
The third is, well, it's my ex-fiancee's birthday as well, by coincidence. See the thing above I mentioned about toxicity and forgiveness? Went double for me, as you can figure by that "ex" part. And as someone who's moved beyond that and has now been with the same woman for two decades and is close to hitting the twentieth anniversary mark? That's something else to keep in mind: keep the ones you love close. Always let them know how much you love them and how much they mean to you. And if you don't have that kind of person in your life, keep looking - they'll be there someday, it just doesn't seem like it now. But that moment will happen when you least expect it. BOOM - magic.
And lastly, never give up on your dreams. Anyone who tells you otherwise either has already given up on theirs, or is jealous of you being a dreamer. Harlan Sanders got famous in his sixties. Betty White was 51 when she was discovered by Hollywood. Morgan Freeman was 52. Those of you writing, making music, creating art, streaming, whatever it is? Don't stop, no matter how much the voices, inside or out, say "you'll never succeed." You've already beaten those voices each time you keep going. And maybe you won't be a Hollywood Legend or a Grammy winner or whatever. But you'll be a damn sight ahead of all those naysayers. And that is the best accolade of all.
