Two Wolves

"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens." ~ Kahlil Gibran

An old and wise Cherokee Indian is speaking to his grandson one day about a battle which goes on inside people.

He tells the boy, "My son, there is a battle between two wolves going on inside all of us.

One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith."

His grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf wins?"

The old man simply replied, "The one you feed."

We each have the ability to choose a path to follow.

You might feel that the choice of paths is limited. But if you see it that way, you are missing the point. Your attitude is what determines the greatness (or pull you from the failure) of the path chosen.

Do not misunderstand what choosing a path means. If your choice is a destructive lifestyle, the consequences will soon overcome you. In example, it is unlikely a meth addict eventually enjoys having made the choice in the first place. Nor would a fading porn star, alcoholic or any one of a dozen things.

Bad choices, if that is what they are, can be overcome. You have the ability to change, to make new choices.

And when you find your life is not where you want it to be; complaint will not get remove you from the condition. In fact, the energy you exert in complaint will be wasted on the problem. It will keep you firmly stuck on that wrong path.

Choosing to take a more positive approach will allow you to divert your energy towards finding a better path. You will be more focused on what you can change in your life.

As the wise old man said, "the one you feed" will be the life you get. There are so many changed lives out there based upon this simple principle of life. Feed the positive nature of your life and let it grow to greater heights.

Stay inspired my friends!

Just One Thing

“Give freely to the world these gifts of love and compassion. Do not concern yourself with how much you receive in return, just know in your heart it will be returned.” ― Steve Maraboli


Think of one thing you can do.

Just one thing you can do that makes a difference for someone else.

What one thing do you have inside that will create that difference?

Just one thing.


Stay inspired my friends!

This is my day!

"So, yes this is MY day, and I will be somewhere." - Dan Field

This is a day in which I give you the words from another. Each of us have family, friends and others that have been affected by cancer. When we hear of it, we feel powerless and deficient to do anything about it. But there are things we can do.

- We can support fundraising efforts in support of research.
- We can take part in awareness campaigns that help minimize risk of cancer.
- We can support those dealing with cancer today, simply being there, loving them.

The following are words from a work friend of mine regarding his close friend. It is about the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. It is about words from a man who embodied hope for others, even as hope faded for him.

Please take the time to read and possibly support this one of many good causes. Ten, one hundred or a thousand dollars go a long way and every dime is greatly appreciated.

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From Tim Colligan - Profile

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I again would like to start by thanking everyone who has generously donated to the DFCI supporting my ride this year. I also appreciate your words of encouragement and thanks. The thanks however, need to be directed to the good people at DFCI and the hard work they do caring for patients and families and of course working to discover better treatment, care and ultimately a cure for this horrible disease that affects too many.

Back on February 4th which was World Cancer Day, I briefly wrote about a few of the people I personally dedicate my fundraising efforts and my bike ride to; Dan Field was one of them.

Dan is a close friend who is the guy that got me back on a bike and involved with this event, the Pan-Mass Challenge. I have been involved as a rider, event volunteer or kids ride volunteer every year since. Dan’s journey started back in 2002 around the holidays after a health event at work. Shortly after, Dan was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor. A husband and father of two, his worst fears were realized. Dan’s 1st brain surgery was shortly before Christmas that year followed by a specific treatment protocol.

Living in Massachusetts and being a cycling enthusiast, I knew about the Pan-Mass Challenge and day one of the route runs through a portion of the town we live in. As a thank you for the care and treatment Dan received at BWMC/DFCI he committed to and rode his 1st PMC in 2003, 8 months after surgery and treatment.

I was more than happy to support his efforts and donated to his ride. I believe it was in 2004 when I got the first “why don’t you ride the PMC this year” from Dan. I laughed it off and stated that I will stick to donating money. But in 2005, the tumors in Dan’s brain returned. A second surgery followed and when time to sign up for the 2006 PMC came, Dan did not hesitate. If he he could physically ride the bike, he was in.

Here is where my role changed.

When Dan asked me to join him in 2006, how could I say no? This guy endured two brain surgeries, radiation, chemo, months of treatment, countless tests, hospital visits and he is still on the bike. What was my excuse? So my PMC journey began and it was personal.

We all have a friend, a family member, someone we love affected by cancer, I only had to look to my wife who was diagnosed with malignant melanoma. Not to mention aunts, uncles, friends and Dan.

Then in the summer of 2012, Dan said in his cool, ‘I have it covered’ style, told me his latest MRI was not good and the tumors were back. More tests and surgery number three followed just days before Dan’s 10th PMC. Dan was unable to ride, but I met him Sunday morning, day two of the PMC to greet our teammates on Setucket Rd in the town of Dennis enroute to P-town.

A third brain surgery could not keep him away. And Dan continued to defy the cancer for two more years, but his body could not take it and as Dan said to me once, ‘the cancer has gotten smarter. It learned how to beat the treatment.’

Dan passed away July 17, 2014 surrounded by his loving family.

Through the last 12+ years Dan was battling this disease, not once did I hear him complain or feel sorry for himself. He endeavored, fought on and gave back. I’m a better person for having Dan in my life.

Here is an excerpt from a message Dan wrote to his family and friends in 2012:

“I have been training hard for the PMC (my 10th year riding!) and feel like I am ahead of the game with being in perfect shape for this ride. Time will tell whether I will ride the whole thing, part of it or I will be at the pedal partner stop cheering my team on.

I will be somewhere on my day!

I say my day, because I feel very strongly about raising the money so desperately needed to fund cancer research. This disease affects so many people, people with the cancer, people who take care of the people with cancer, family, and friends. One day I wish this would never have to be the case, and the only way possible is to raise the money, one dollar at a time.

So, yes this is MY day, and I will be somewhere.”

It is Dan’s day and he will be there with me and the rest of his teammates August 2 & 3 pushing us up that hill or helping us reach deep when we are out of gas in the dunes in Truro, because that’s what Dan would do.

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I ask you to generously support Tim's 2014 PMC ride with a tax deductible donation. Any amount is appreciated and 100% of the funds raised goes directly to the DFCI.

Each year, Tim carries with him the names of friends and family of those who are or have battled cancer in honor and tribute for the 190 miles. It is both a reminder and incentive to push through the miles and is truly the reason why each cyclist and volunteer is out there.

Thank you everyone and stay inspired.

DONATE HERE

The Fire Inside

“Abruptly the poker of memory stirs the ashes of recollection and uncovers a forgotten ember, still smoldering down there, still hot, still glowing, still red as red.” ~ William Manchester

This is a story that comes from a former church Pastor of mine. He was was speaking to a large group of men about re-igniting their lives. And as the story goes, many years ago he was attending a beach-side conference which always held a very large bonfire at conference end.

In the days leading up to the conference, folks involved with putting on the event had built a huge pile of wood and timbers. This was going to be a very large fire for those gathered. Think Burning Man Festival size fire but at a church related event.

As the conference began, the rains began with it. There was rain pouring down for two to three days. Through out the week it was soaking everything including the wood being piled high for the final night bonfire. Of course the final night came, the rains had ceased and everyone had expectations of a grand fire.

As you would guess, the wood was wet and the days sunshine had not dried it fully. So organizers and good intentioned folks began gathering anything flammable. They found newspaper, dry brush and lots of matches were consumed trying to get this bonfire burning bright.

Then out of the corner of Steve's eye, he sees a person coming with a large fuel can, gasoline one would expect, letting the liquid fly towards the pile. It was estimated this person had two or more gallons of the highly flammable liquid.

To no one's surprise, there were a few small embers from the failed attempts to fully ignite the wood pile. Those embers were still glowing within the pile of wood, newspaper and twigs. I am sure you have seen what happens with gasoline. The fumes are flammable and all it takes it a small spark or ember to ignite it completely.

An instant solar flare occurred which lit up the entire coastline. News reports indicate ships off-shore thought it was a light beacon. So intense that...well, you get the picture.

The amazing thing about this story is all it took was one small flame.

One small spark or ember to change everything.

Something so small and singular in purpose we somehow forget that it exists, but it does exist. It exists in each of us, deep inside where we have forgotten it.

That one small flame glows, just waiting for you to throw something on it. To let it ignite your life and explode into something great. Oh yes, it does exist and all it takes is that one small flame. A small touch or a small amount of movement to change your life.

Stay inspired my friends.