Member-only story
I’m No Philosopher, Teacher, or Clever Shit.
But I sure picked up on how to deal with the life I was dished up.
Sometimes, a person needs a hand to hold and a heart to understand. I remember walking on the shore with Dad until I was sixteen. Yes, as a teenager, I held his hand on our walks.
Even with the twilight of my life dimming, I continue to learn from others.
I watched Dad’s life unravel. The closer it got to the end, the faster it went. God didn’t give me everything I asked for, and money didn’t buy me extra time, but I did learn that under everyone’s hard shell is someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
When things didn’t go my way, when life was wretched, when the facts didn’t change, when I planned to get even, I continued to hurt. Things can turn people ugly, but looks are easily changed using a smile.
Life is tough, but I made myself tougher.
Others gathered up opportunities lost, and I harboured a lot of bitterness. I learned to dock that bitterness somewhere else.
I have tried in life to keep my words soft and tender because tomorrow, I may have to eat them. I can’t choose how I feel but can choose what I do about it.
