Birthday Wish

“Reach high, for stars lie hidden in your soul. Dream deep, for every dream precedes the goal.” - Pamela Vaull Starr

The youngest of the eight turns 19 today, the last teen of so many children we have raised. My four boys and my wife's four girls, one final year with a teenager in the house. So let me get this out of the way first;

"Happy Birthday To You !!"
"Happy Birthday To You !!"
"Happy Birthday Dear Jake-man !!"
"Happy Birthday To You !!"

Sounds better in written format and it will not chase off readers of this article. But as any parent, we are proud of all our children and their individual talents. On his birthday though we turn attention to the youngest. Surely his brothers harass him on being the 'baby' of the family, but he stands on his own.

His musical talent, song writing skills and guitar playing amaze me immensely. The band he co-founded called Electric Eel House Surprize (EEHS for short) is getting close to releasing their first CD. They have had a very successful first live appearance at a local night club where many bands get their start.

Of course, the parent in me wants him to get that college degree to 'safe guard' him against the cruel statistics of the music business. If anything, the knowledge can help guard him against the cruelty of the business itself. But my greater want is for him to reach for his dreams, to be successful and share his talent with the world.

It is anything that any parent would want for their own child. We simply want it for all eight of our children. But again, today it is Steve's birthday and our wish is for him to have success. He will work for it, he will earn it, he will enjoy that success.

Be a cheer leader for yourself, but be a cheer leader for your children. Lift them and if need be, lift them up and past you. There is no feeling like it in this world. And should they fall, you will be there to catch them; to help dust them off; to help push them back up again. Your life will be rewarded far beyond imagine.

So happy birthday Steve, happy birthday everyone!
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Tomorrow

Birthday Wish message for my son and for the child of anyone .... tomorrow !
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Lifting Up

"The truest help we can render an afflicted man is not to take his burden from him, but to call out his best energy, that he may be able to bear the burden." - Phillips Brooks

Every day we have two choices to make in dealing with other people. One, we can put them down and discourage them. Or two, we can encourage them and help lift them up. And in your own life, you have experienced both choices as people interact with you.

It is tough enough going through various circumstances in life without others beating you down. I have to stop and ask myself as well on many occassions if I'm lifting or pushing down others. So I won't claim to be an innocent in this part of life.

But I do work on it and believe if others thought more about their actions, each of our lives would be better. At the very least, we would have more encouragement to endure some of the trials we go through.

So think about your own actions towards others and try to lift them when possible. Soon enough, it may be you that requires some lifting as well.
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Living Attitude

"Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe." - Voltaire

I will admit that I am not very good when it comes to being sick. The kind of sick that is the minor kind like a flu or head cold. My way of battling is to hunker down, drink lots of water and try not to talk very much. Hopefully I am not a whining type of sick person, but only my wife would be able to tell.

When I think about being sick though, I always wonder how I would react to the big ones. When surgery is required or some greater form of cancer or disease. Those would be the things that a person really has a right to be whiny about. And when I look back at others I have watched go through a major ordeal, it is not being whiny that I saw in them.

A good friend of ours had a form of brain cancer many years ago. She was healed and has had many years of healthy living. Then recently, there was a concern, a spot that appeared again. The worst could be thought and the worry came back over, yet she braved it with great faith and resolve.

The spot was revealed to have been just old scar tissue and is not cancerous. She never lost her faith during this ordeal. She smiled, she lived and she fought off all of the bad things that could have overcome her. Never a 'woe is me' came from her on what could have been completely different.

I also remember watching my Mother go through her fight with Pancreatic Cancer this past year. While she had symptoms (knowing what we know now) back in late 2007, she was diagnosed in January of 2008. It is said normally that by the time it is diagnosed, it is already too late.

But my mother fought the good fight, trying the various rounds of chemo treatments bravely and always with a smile. And as she lay in her final days with family gathered around, she continued to teach us with stories and laughter. Her faith is what kept her in good stead through out. She told us at one point that "prayer was for us before we knew what prayer was."

I do not know each of your beliefs on prayer nor do I write to convince you to pray. For me I find prayer comforting in many ways, believing in my faith to help pull me through despite what is happening in the natural. I learned from my mother and many others, that you approach sickness just as anything else two ways. One is to give up and foster a bad attitude. The second is to fight it and keep a good attitude about it.

I choose the second option to live life, fight pain, or approach anything that happens with a good attitude. It will keep my mind clear and energy available to focus on the great things that can happen. Never do I want to waste that on complaint and woe, neither is useful. In the summation of my life, people will have enjoyed being around me through all the ups and downs of that life. And I will have lived a greater life because of it.
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