The Road Less Traveled, Redux

ROAD LESS TRAVELED

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth

Then took the other as just as fair
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear
Though as for that, the passing there
Had worn them really about the same

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet, knowing how way leads onto way
I doubted if I should ever come back

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence
Two roads diverged in a wood
And I took the one less traveled by
And that has made all the difference

-- Robert Frost

I love this poem. It says so much on so many levels. Even Robert Frost cautioned not to approach it lightly, describing it as "a tricky thing." He was correct in that assessment (and being the author he would know, wouldn't he?) I don't think I have ever come across a piece of poetry that was more analyzed, dissected, reviewed, or commented on than this one. And for what it's worth, I'm about to add my two cents to the mix ...

Let me state categorically that while I have been a writer since just about the time I could first pick up a pencil I am not a poet -- not by the longest stretch of the most flexible imagination. I have tried my hand at it a number of times and, in a word, I suck. In fact, I am so bad at it, that subjecting oneself to my attempts at poetry usually results in lasting psychological trauma and the near obsessive desire to somehow unread it. It takes a mind more fanciful than mine to create even decent poetry.

That does not mean, however, that I cannot appreciate writing that speaks to me, that gives me pause to think, including poetry. My observations, then, on "The Road Not Taken" (the actual title of the piece) come purely from life experience and not any pretentious, nose-in-the-air academic background. In fact, what follows is less about interpreting the poem than it is about the thoughts and impressions to which it gave rise.

I originally became acquainted with this verse in middle school English class. At 12 or 13 years old I had no clue what Frost was talking about. I was more concerned with 12 or 13 year old girls. The teacher, on the other hand, approached it as if it was incredibly profound ... and honestly something about it struck me as memorable even if I wasn't sure just what that something was. I was reminded of it once again when, driving home from work late one night, I happened to catch an NPR broadcast of a series of recently rediscovered archival recordings read in the author's own austere voice. "The Road Not Taken" was one of four of his works that were broadcast.

Hearing this one, though, started me thinking (I know, hard to believe, right?). What exactly is The Road Less Traveled? It differs for all of us, I am certain. But what it essentially boils down to is this ...

We are all travelers in a yellow wood (life); and we all must eventually come to a point where the path we are following diverges. It is a moment of critical decision wherein we will ask ourselves, "Do I go THIS way or THAT?" The particulars will vary by individual, of course, but the moment is remarkably similar for everyone.

We are presented with several choices upon reaching this divergence: We can follow the path of popular opinion, what everyone else wants us to do which frequently comes to us in the form of advice -- both solicited & unsolicited -- from well-meaning friends and/or family; or we can follow our gut, that tiny voice inside of us, what I call our True Self; this is the instinctive part of of our nature that knows what we should do in any given situation; or we can ignore both and do nothing. The divergence in the road presents itself each and every time we make a weighty decision.

For some then -- say those who follow the crowd -- the Road Less Traveled may be the path of self-reliance, the road that leads away from popular opinion. For others -- those who consistently buck convention -- the Road Less Traveled may mean following the crowd for once and not being an iconoclast. Both would be unfamiliar territory.

In either case one must ultimately choose the path that makes the most sense TO YOU. To follow the crowd, even when you know better, is an outward manifestation of an inner fear. To resist popular opinion just because it's popular -- or in the words of that immortal philosopher, Tina Fey (channeling the spirit of Sarah Palin) -- to "get all mavericky" just to be a maverick borders on sociopathy.

Whatever your Road Less Traveled, take it ... but only if it makes sense. To do otherwise is to violate your own nature. And that is the antithesis of Mindfulness.

Look at the closing lines of the poem, Frost says "And I took the one less traveled by/ And that has made all the difference." There is often a world of valuable experience to be found off the beaten path. So even getting lost along the way, straying from our original intent may reveal some hidden insight. The key is being open to it., being aware to the lesson or experience when it presents itself.

Earlier in the piece, seemingly contradictorally, he compared the two paths and found both to be equally travelled, and he decided to keep "the first for another day." But the author was also aware that the chances of him likely coming back to this place again were infinitely small, realizing "how way leads upon way."

If we are self-aware and not just mindless automatons blundering through our own lives, the "Road Not Taken" will nearly always leave us with a sense of "what if ..." We may not walk that particular path again, we may diverge from the path we did choose, and we will wonder what might have been had we chosen the other path. This is natural, so long as we are not debilitated by the regret.

I think the real point here is simply to choose a path. Either path. The power as always is in the choosing.

Until next time ...

In a Mellow Mood

If you can find a singer anywhere on the planet with a more beautiful, ethereal voice than this let me know ... 'cause I don't see it happening any time soon.




A second one ...



Do duets get better than this?



Again ... Holy Crap! What an inspired pairing of voices.

Two More ...

Yep ... that's Tom Wopat from Dukes of Hazzard.



This one sums up alot of what I taught my students ...

A Few Meaningful Songs

The following songs are a few of my favorites. Each really struck a chord in me, epecially "Where've You Been?" and "Standing Knee Deep in a River Dying of Thirst" by Kathy Mattea -- one of the most beautiful and underrated voices ever. As an aside: Joe Cocker also recorded an AMAZING version of "Standing Knee Deep ..." It's on YouTube. I highly urge you to look it up.

"Where've You Been"


"Standing Knee Deep in a River, Dying of Thirst"


"Catch the Wind" Donovan (yes, Bob Dylan also recorded a fantastic version of this tune ... but THIS is the original. Still moving, despite being pimped out for commercial purposes)


"Waiting in Vain" -- Annie Lennox, from the movie Serendipity. Great movie, great song and considering recent events in my life, very relevant.



Maybe it is the writer in me, but I find myself most attracted to music -- of all genres -- that "says" something, rather than music that simply has a decent beat. Hope you enjoyed these.

A Walk in the Country, The Sequel

These were also taken Sunday, July 5, the same day as the previous pics. I captured these images during a hike at Frances Slocum State Park, which is only a 15 minute or so drive from my house. Named after a white girl who was taken captive by a local Indian tribe and raised among them sometime in the 18th century, there are parts of the park that are overwhelmed by people and others -- such as these -- that hardly ever ever see human traffic. It pays to venture off the beaten path. One hardly ever sees wildlife on the well traveled paths, but this day I saw rabbits, a multitude of songbirds (cardinals, bluebirds, blue jays, even an oriole), a couple of red tail hawks, a garter snake, a copperhead, assorted squirrels & chipmunks, a fox (!!), and a mother deer and two fawns.

However, because even the seemingly simplest of activities (a relaxing hike in the woods, for example) must ultimately turn into a full-scale production with me, I also got lost for several hours. Saw lots of wildlife. Took pictures. Got lost in the woods. Wandered aimlessly for several hours. Fell down a time or two. Scratched and bruised. Every muscle was screaming in agony. Eventually blundered into a highway. Had to hike 5+ miles out of my way to get back to my car. Feet, legs, shoulders were killing me. The pictures, though, were worth every minute of it. Enjoy.

A Walk In The Country

A few pics taken near where I live. If the quality is somewhat lacking, I apologize; these pics were taken with the camera on my cell phone.

It's pretty quiet around here most of the time. A nice place to walk and to think and to get lost in the Now.

Darcy Farrow

This kid is all over YouTube. From the info posted with one of his other videos, he's a college student from Fort Worth, TX. I think this is one of the earlier vids he put out. Pure clear voice & an excellent cover of a John Denver song I loved as a kid. What is really cool is that whoever this guy is, for one so young he has a definite ear for folk tunes from the 60s & 70s. Amazing. Picture quality leaves something to be desired but other than that ... simply amazing IMHO.

Would You Like Fries With That?

I am in no way a fan of the government interfering in any area of my life. At best they are a necessary evil. I pay my taxes like everyone else and that is about all the interaction I want with them; generally, I feel that the farther away they stay the better off we all are. Having said that, though, I feel that it should be mandated by Federal law that EVERYONE -- and I do mean EVERYONE -- at some point in their adult lives work for one full year in a minimum wage service job -- convenience store clerk, fast food cashier, stocking shelves in a supermarket, etc. There should be allowed no possibility of quitting and/ or seeking greener pastures for any reason until the time obligation has been fulfilled. Furthermore, if the employee calls off work two consecutive times or more than four valid times in the alloted year for any reason other than bodily injury or the death of an immediate family member, a penalty period of one month should be tacked on to the original year; and, frankly, it should double for each additional infraction. During this 12-month tenure, the "employee" should be subject to the same rules, requirements, and restrictions as his/ her co-workers. Regardless of whether this new-hire was formerly a sanitation worker, student, or CEO of a multi-billion dollar multi-national corporation, no special consideration or privelege should be afforded.

Harsh? Maybe. Unrealistic? Arguable. Tongue in cheek? Only slightly. Does it serve a greater purpose? Most definitely.

For better or worse, jobs like those described above comprise the bulk of the American work force. In fact, it has been estimated that the fast food industry alone is by far the largest single group of low-wage workers in the United States. The vast majority of those workers are teenagers and young adults, quite literally the future of our nation. The US has approximately 3.5 million fast food workers; compare that to about 1.5 million migrant farm workers. The turnover rate for minimum wage service industry jobs is among the highest in the American economy, around 300-400% per year. That's the equivalent of a worker quitting every 3-4 months.

Our esteemed elected officials have huffed and puffed and managed to increase the national minimum wage to $7.25/ hour as if they have done us a huge favor. Although I am far removed from what one would label a bleeding heart liberal, try -- just try -- living on $7.25/ hour. Trust me, it ain't as easy as they'd lead you to believe.

Jobs such as these are horrible drudgery, and they will either completely and utterly disabuse you of your faith in humanity or instill in you both the patience of a saint and an unparalled tolerance for bullshit. Having worked several such jobs, I can say honestly that I have hovered uneasily somewhere in the middle of those two feelings, at times drifting dangerously close to the former. Let me state for the record that I unequivocally respect anyone who must slog through an 8 hour shift at one of these thankless, menial jobs on a daily basis in order to provide for themselves or a family.

Having done time (those words were carefully and deliberately chosen) in enough such establishments I recognize that they are all virtually the same under the skin. Oh, the products and services they offer might be different, but they are identical, by and large, in that the workers they employ tend to be extremely overworked, highly, underskilled, and woefully underpaid in relation to the amount of stress that they must endure. Fast food joints ... convenience stores are all remarkably similar in terms of the hierarchy and class-make up of the workers and in terms of the caliber of customers they serve.

Convenience stores are odd creatures, second only to fast food restaurants in employee turnover and exquisitely low rates of pay. They are unusual also in that they seemingly exist ONLY for themselves (or rather for their corporate parents), simply to make a profit. They serve no greater good. They provide no product or service that cannot be found elsewhere -- and usually at a substantially more affordable price. I speak from the heart (and from experience) when I tell you that I honestly believe that about the only job worse than being a clerk in a convenience store is being the jizz mopper in an adult theater (thank you, Kevin Smith; I have been waiting years to use that line ... true as it is).

As I said, I speak from experience (the clerk thing, NOT the jizz mopper thing), some of it fairly recent. In my lifetime (both before & after I opened my own business and managed a few others) I have worked behind the counter of a video store, a bagel shop, a home and garden center, a beer distributor, a movie theater (NOT, I stress again, of the adult variety), and TWO convenience stores. That qualifies me to speak with some authority on the subject. Futhermore, that experience helped shape my approach to managing people and to running a business.

So what is all of this about? Why should literally everyone be made to do these jobs if they're so bad? That is exactly the point: EVERYONE needs to do something like this as an adult precisely BECAUSE these jobs are so unrewarding and diffucult. They are tedious, extremely stressful and nerve wracking with little or no reward. The hours are long. Frequently the employees are treated as little more than mindless robots, cattle, or derelicts who cannot do any better for themselves. They are treated this way by customers and employers alike. I call these low wage-long hours-high stress-little or no reward-minimal room for advancement jobs "vampires" because they will suck the life out of you and darken your soul if you allow them to.

EVERYONE needs to experience this because it is humbling. EVERYONE who employs anyone especially needs to go through it first hand ... as should EVERYONE who intends to one day manage others. These jobs are a great training ground to develop respect, humility, discipline, resistance to adversity, and the ability to shoulder a ton of shit and smile while doing it. Even those who started out hard-scrabble, clawed their way to the top and struck gold need to wade back into the trenches from time to time for a refresher lest they forget their roots.

After all, part of the Mindful Journey is being as Mindful of others as we are of ourselves.

Someday I'll be Saturday Night

Found these videos while messing around on YouTube. A friend of mine introduced me to this song 15 or more years ago. We were both going through some particularly rough patches in our lives; we both had troubles in our marriages, we both were questioning where our lives were going (imagine that) and she brought this song to me and said, "Don't we ALL feel this way sometimes?"

Anyway, I found two versions: on the top is the original, high energy version that she played for me those many years ago (the song is cool but the video ... well there's no real video to speak of) and, on the bottom, a newer acoustic version. I couldn't decide which was better so here they BOTH are. Let me know what you think.

As for the woman who introduced me to this song ...She was a good friend, but as happens every now and then, we gradually fell out of touch ... I sometimes wonder what she is doing today ... Is she happier now than she was then? ... She certainly deserves to be.

Ordinary Things

The older I get the more pure joy I find in seemingly ordinary things. My daughter's laughter ... the aroma of freshly ground coffee brewing in the morning ... a slow, steady summer rain drumming on my window pain ... the acrid smell of wood smoke on the late Autumn breeze ... a soft word lovingly whispered in the deep of night ... sleeping close to the woman you love so much it feels as if your heart will burst ... a spontaneous conversation with a stranger in line at the grocery store ... sailboats on Harveys Lake ... Theo's homemade apple pie, still warm and steaming from the oven ... that sense of bone weary, exhausted accomplishment that followed a grueling Martial Arts class ... the peaceful solitude of a sunrise over the ocean, the only sounds the call of gulls and the rush of surf on sand.

These are the important things -- not the accumulation of material goods, monetary wealth or prestige. Those are merely window dressing, trappings. The art of authentic living is to simplify, to slow down, to become part of the natural ebb and flow of life, not resist it.

To be honest this attitude has nearly always been part of my nature, but with maturity has come, I think, a deeper more seasoned appreciation that is unfortunately frequently lost on the young. They smell the coffee brewing, but they don't really smell it in other words. It is background, white noise, not an experience in and of itself.

I recall a trip I took about 15 years ago with a group of my karate students. All ages and ranks were competing in a Martial Arts tournament in Columbia County -- a 2 hour drive from my studio. The tournament started promptly at 9AM, so we piled into a caravan of cars and left the school parking lot at 6:30AM. I was riding shotgun in a van with 6 or 8 of my young students.

The sun was just breaching the horizon as we passed through the Mahoning Valley. Fog, thick as milk and turned salmon pink by the rising sun, had settled across the verdant farmland on the valley floor. The entire tableau was magnificent, artistic in its power and serenity. I sat up straight in my seat and my awe must have showed on my face, because soon, half a dozen students werre crowded against the side windows of the van. One of them asked, "What are you looking at, Mr. Barnes." I pointed out the window at the scene below us. To a person they all said the same thing, "What? I don't see anything!" And they really didn't. I'm not sure what they expected I was looking at, but we were seeing two different vistas; whereas I saw the artistry of nature, they saw a big open space, nothing more

That sunrise occured a decade and a half ago and I remember it as vividly as if it were only this morning. I'll bet not one of the students would remember it, even if I mentioned it. Not that there was anything inherently wrong in what they saw or how they saw it .. it's just that they expected "more". When I was their age I probably would have done the same thing.
Mindfulness is being fully engaged in the present, meeting each moment with a clear mind and cleansed spirit so that the moment to moment union becomes the highest state. The past no longer exists -- let it go; the future remains only an illusion until it manifests -- do not cling; all we have is here and now. The whole tradition of Zen is constructed around this concept. Far from being the exclusive domain of Eastern thought, mindfulness can be practiced by anyone ... anywhere ... at any time. It requires no formal training ... no rigid dogma ... no regimented techniques ... and no special tools save for an open mind. And it doesn't require us to change our lives unless we so desire; it simply says to be present, in the now, no matter what we are doing. One can practice mindfulness in everything from watching television to having sex, in one's career to playing games with the kids.
Earlier I mentioned simplification; in truth mindfulness is more than that. Much more. For one can be mindful even in the most complicated and seemingly insurmountable of circumstances. In fact, when life apears to be about as bad as it can be ... that is the time when in-the-present mindfulness is needed more than ever. Imagine being fully present during an argument or a crisis. The mindful person does not wait like a hungry tiger for the moment to interject their own thoughts, or impose their dominance through force of will; they yield to the energy of the situation and seek the solution naturally.
I am reminded of an old proverb in which a Zen Master was asked how his life changed when he became enlightened. He replied, "Before enlightenment, I would chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, I would chop wood and carry water."
Now, I am certainly no expert or Zen Master but the quote above means something profound to me. As I see it, before he attained satori the Master did those things because they were part of his life and they needed to be done, but he did them without understanding, and was likely distracted by a thousand other thoughts -- anything but the task at hand. However, once he became enlightened, he understood that "chop wood, carry water" still needed to be done. He just did them differently. Another meaningful proverb, “If you understand, then things are just as they are. If you do not understand, then things are just as they are.” illustrates much the same thing. The problem isn’t reality, the problem is our perception. I saw it written somewhere that we cannot accept that which we don’t perceive correctly, or, maybe, we cannot perceive correctly that which we haven’t accepted. No matter how difficult life seems many "problems" are the result of perception (or lack of acceptance) of the way things are, rather than being the result of the way things actually are.
So we come to this: mindfulness cannot be taught. It must be individually experienced. Try this: The next time you step out your front door, pause for a moment, open your mind to everything that is going on around you -- the sights, the sounds, the smells. See the moment for what it is, live every minute detail. Close your eyes and feel the rain on your face (we've certainly had enough of it here in Northeast PA). Be free of judgement. If you get wet, you get wet. You will dry out again. Just "be." It's not easy; it will take some time because for most of us, this type of thing is outside of our comfort zone.

And lastly, because mindfulnes is such an individual thing, maybe those students in the van with me were correct. Maybe they didn't see the same sunrise as me because in their moment they were simply aware of other things. If so, weren't they being true to their own nature? Maybe their vision was equally as extraordinary as mine ... I just didn't see it.

Until next time ...

One of my Biggest Flaws ...

I was going to write a post about what a procrastinator I am ... But I decided to wait ...

The Road Less Traveled, Part 1

I Googled Robert Frost's poem and I came across this video. In light of what I previously posted regarding the power of choice, I decided to go with this for now. I won't add any commentary other than to simply say that this song really "gets it". The lyrics hit me hard and deep. Enjoy.

Knee Deep in Freedom

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY EVERYONE! In the chaos of family picnics and weekend binge drinking, let's all please take a moment to remember and honor those brave souls who resisted tyranny to found this great nation. For all its faults America is still the beacon of hope, liberty and promise for a shining future. Pause for a moment, too, to give thanks to the troops who, even now are giving of themselves to ensure our everlasting freedom. I wish them success and a safe journey home.

Choices

"A kid knows what he wants to be before he's 9 or 10: cowboys, clowns, men of war, or someone else's friend. But 9 grows into big boy's pants and then to scars and pain. 20's fast and hard as nails, but never comes again." -- John Denver

I like John Denver's music and I felt that those lyrics from one of his earliest tunes, "Pegasus", were not only the perfect way to start this blog, but sum up quite nicely the process of change that I, like most people, have undergone in my life. I have spent a great deal of time (maybe too much) reflecting on those changes, their significance and meaning, recording them in my offline journal, and now here.

I tend to ask myself alot of reflective questions: "How did my life get from THERE (wherever "there" may be) to HERE (wherever "here" may be)?", "How did I go from being who and what I once was to who and what I am?", "How is it that I could go from successful businessman running a full-time Martial Arts studio that served literally thousands of students over its 16 year lifespan, to working in a convenience store?", "From $5.00/hr. + commission salesman in a retail menswear store to store manager in 7 months ... to losing it all in the blink of an eye?", "From married man ... to divorced father?", "From meeting and falling in love with the woman who I believe to be my soulmate ... to losing her?", "From graduating high school a quarter of a century ago ... to full-time student at 44 years of age?"

They're strong questions, valid questions. But they are not unique to me; we all ask ourselves similar questions, or I'd like to think we do. I have long believed that everything happens for a reason (yep, I'm one of THOSE people), if only to teach us something. In asking the hard questions, in casting a critical eye on the things I've done, or haven't done, I try to leave judgements of "good" or "bad" out of it, to simply see what is. Sometimes, looking back over it all, I marvel and say, "Wow, what a journey!" Other times I can only shake my head, completely baffled and say, "WTF?"

The philospher, Socrates, on trial for the heresy of advising his students to actively question the accepted beliefs of the time (the punishment for which was death!) and to, therefore, think for themselves, said in his defense, "The unexamined life is not worth living."

Our lives are the sum total of the choices we make. We are defined by our choices. We are who we are because of them. I truly believe that we are exactly where we are in our lives -- joyous or miserable -- because that is where we choose to be; if we wanted to be anywhere else, we would have chosen differently. That is our power. Whenever I have discussed this concept, someone invariably says something like, "What if I was crossing the street and was hit by a car and crippled? You aren't saying I chose that are you?" Maybe not ... or maybe so. I would ask: "Did you cross the street with the proper light? At the proper spot? Did you rush headlong into traffic with little or no regard for your safety or the safety of others? Were you too busy yakking on the cell phone to pay attention to your environment?" If any of those things are true, then yes, I would argue that in a very real way your own actions -- your choices -- culminated in your being at the place at that time with that end result. You may not have specifically chosen to be struck by a car, but you chose every element leading up to it. Assuming , though, that everything was as it should be, every factor neatly in place, and you followed all the "rules", did everything you were supposed to do, perhaps you didn't choose that particular fate ... but something did. Regardless of whether the event occured by synchronicity, by design or human error, you are still presented with a choice. Even when circumstances are seemingly beyond our control, when they seem to choose us, we choose how to interpret them; we alone discern their meaning.

We choose our ACTIONS or our REACTIONS. We choose based solely on two factors: (1) The desire to gain pleasure or, (2) the desire to avoid pain. Of the two, I have found the second to be the stronger by far.

To illustrate: Years ago, I read an interview with two men, brothers whose lives had taken markedly different paths. One was a convicted felon w/ a lengthy arrest record for everything from petty theft to sexual assault and armed robbery. The other was a community leader, successful businessman, a deacon in his church with a stable, loving family. Both grew up in the same house, attended the same school, associated with the same people. Both had the same abusive father, the same distant, alcoholic mother. Both watched a father drift in and out of prison for multiple drug-related offenses, finally dying of a heroin overdose. Both watched a mother slowly succumb to the ravages of cirrhosis of the liver. How is it that two men of the same blood could turn out so vastly different? Because they chose to. When asked that same question they ironically gave the same answer: "With a family like that, how could I be anything else?"

They chose. We choose. Every day.

We are our choices. Nothing more, nothing less. Some folks may say, "Yeah. So?" But for me that realization was a staggering revelation, an awakening, a smaller scale version of what Buddhists might call satori (enlightenment). It was a very powerful moment; it meant that I was the chief architect of my own success or failure. It meant that I was a slave to no person, idea, or situation. It meant that for better or worse I was in control. It meant that I am greater than the involuntary constraints placed upon me by family. It meant that I am greater than my environment.

But it also meant that (HOLY CRAP!) I am not a victim and I could no longer make lame excuses or assign blame when shit inevitably went wrong. If I was a success, it was because of the choices I made. If my life was the Titanic it was because I was the captain (lovely little metaphor). External forces -- such as my home life, my teachers, my ex-wife, poor finances, my upbringing, or worst of all -- the anonymous "THEY" -- could no longer be blamed. You know who "THEY" are, don't you? "Every time I try to get ahead ... THEY keep me down or ... THEY have it in for me" Blah, blah, bullshit. In the words of former President Harry S. Truman: "The buck stops here." (I LOVE quotes, you'll all find thatout soon).

What an absolutely liberating concept: I control my destiny with my choices. It is, I have found, a concept to which people often give lip service but, in point of fact, truly scares the shit out of them. After all, it is far easier to pass blame to some faceless, nameless external cause or to a specific person or institution that "has it in for us" than it is to own our own messy and chaotic lives. I think it's human nature; I've done it myself. But, while other people, things, and institutions, may be involved in any given situation, I ultimately claim responsibility ... or at least my fair share of it. After all, as the cliche goes: "It takes two to tango." And that thinking works for me. Keeps me clear. Focused. And grounded. It empowers me rather than victimizes me.

So here's the deal: before I get any more long-winded with this thing, let me just say that this blog is going to be an outlet of sorts. It will deal with the peaks and valleys of my life ... and the choices I made that lead up to them,and, hopefully, the lessons learned along the way. In the words once again of John Denver: "Some days are diamonds, some days are stone." They will all be here. Writing this will be simultaneously reflective and therapeutic. Those friends that follow me here may learn one or two new things about me ... (or confirm some existing suspicions :) ) Try not to judge too harshly. Also, anyone who reads this: please feel free to comment; all I ask is that we be respectful to one another. Fair enough?

That said ... I am looking forward to you joining me on this "Mindful Journey."