- TODAY'S INSPIRATIONAL “MYTHOLOGICAL MAGIC
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This blog post has been rewritten to incorporate many of the unthinkable, unshakable, and insidious incidents of the last three years.............................
Yet another morning waking up to the news of another deadly shooting, this one in Baton Rouge, LA. With the TV tagline of “A Nation In Panic”. This coming directly after the unbelievable incident in France over the weekend when a truck killed over 100 people and left tens of others fighting for their lives. I refuse to be hypocritical of the mass media's duty to cover the daily events of the world, no matter how ugly and even horrifying at times.
I thought to myself the effect that such a barrage of events must be having on the lives of so many. Especially our youth, who are still collecting vital information about the world to inform their set of values and opinions on how to conduct their lives. Then I remembered a powerful and incredibly inspirational story that I feel needs to be shared, and immediately. Before our consciousness shifts to far into fear and the belief that there is anything that the collective ‘WE’ can do to make any substantial difference. Or even worse, become so numb to such daily barrages, that they decide to simply 'check out' to life's ever changing painful whims. As they say, if you aren't part of the solution, you become part of the problem itself.
So I have come up with an acronym that given our fervent fascination (myself included) with football, I hope will strike a resonant chord with many of you New Age Nerds! Ready.....OK, it all has to do with the term SACK. Which of course in football is that thrilling moment when the opposing defense knocks down the opposing team's quarterback behind the line of scrimmage. A SACK master in the NFL is one of the most prized possessions on the gridiron. And for their efforts, get paid tens of millions of dollars for the perfection of their craft of quickly getting to the quarterback befoere he has the opportunity to get rid of the ball! But, while less than a few thousand of us play football for a living, the rest of us can still collect SACKS that are even more IMPACTFUL than the ones played out on any football field! Just follow me here.
What would it look like if us lesser athletes- armchair quarterbacks- turned the term SACK into a term of true SERVICE by reframing it as :
Sharing
Acts of
Compassion &
Kindess
And instead of thinking there is nothing we can really do to change the state of the world, think of collecting daily SACKS as part of our daily Superhero's Journey! How much could we change the world. In order to illustrate the powerful impact of a real world SACK, I am going to share the following story with you.
- One day, when I was a freshman in high school, I saw a kid from my class was walking home from school. His name was Kyle. It looked like he was carrying all of his books.
- I thought to myself, 'Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must really be a nerd.‘ I had quite a weekend planned (parties and a football game with my friends tomorrow afternoon), so I shrugged my shoulders and went on.
- As I was walking, I saw a bunch of kids running toward him. They ran at him, knocking all his books out of his arms and tripping him so he landed in the dirt. His glasses went flying, and I saw them land in the grass about ten feet from him... He looked up and I saw this terrible sadness in his eyes.
- My heart went out to him. So, I jogged over to him as he crawled around looking for his glasses, and I saw a tear in his eye. As I handed him his glasses, I said, 'Those guys are jerks. They really should get lives. '
- He looked at me and said, 'Hey thanks!' There was a big smile on his face. It was one of those smiles that showed real gratitude. Hey thanks
- I helped him pick up his books, and asked him where he lived... As it turned out, he lived near me, so I asked him why I had never seen him before... He said he had gone to private school before now. I would have never hung out with a private school kid before. We talked all the way home, and I carried some of his books. He turned out to be a pretty cool kid. I asked him if he wanted to play a little football with my friends He said yes..
- We hung out all weekend and the more I got to know Kyle, the more I liked him, and my friends thought the same of him.
- Monday morning came, and there was Kyle with the huge stack of books again. I stopped him and said, 'Boy, you are gonna really build some serious muscles with this pile of books everyday! ' He just laughed and handed me half the books. Over the next four years, Kyle and I became best friends..
- When we were seniors we began to think about college. Kyle decided on Georgetown and I was going to Duke. I knew that we would always be friends, that the miles would never be a problem. He was going to be a doctor and I was going for business on a football scholarship..
- Kyle was valedictorian of our class. I teased him all the time about being a nerd. He had to prepare a speech for graduation. I was so glad it wasn't me having to get up there and speak.
- Graduation day, I saw Kyle. He looked great. He was one of those guys that really found himself during high school. He filled out and actually looked good in glasses. He had more dates than I had and all the girls loved him. Boy, sometimes I was jealous!
- Today was one of those days. I could see that he was nervous about his speech. So, I smacked him on the back and said, 'Hey, big guy, you'll be great!' He looked at me with one of those looks (the really grateful one) and smiled. ' Thanks,' he said.
- As he started his speech, he cleared his throat, and began…. 'Graduation is a time to thank those who helped you make it through those tough years. Your parents, your teachers, your siblings, maybe a coach....but mostly your friends..... I am here to tell all of you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them.
- I am going to tell you a story.' I just looked at my friend with disbelief as he told about the first day we met. He had planned to kill himself over the weekend. He talked of how he had cleaned out his locker so his Mom wouldn't have to do it later and was carrying his stuff home.
- He looked hard at me and gave me a little smile. 'Thankfully, I was saved... My friend saved me from doing the unspeakable....'
- I heard the gasp go through the crowd as this handsome, popular boy told us all about his weakest moment. I saw his Mom and Dad looking at me and smiling that same grateful smile. Not until that moment did I realize it's depth.
- Never underestimate the power of your actions.. With one small gesture you can change a person's life. For better or for worse...... God puts us all in each others lives to impact one another in some way. Look for God in others.
- 'Friends are angels who lift us to our feet when our wings have trouble remembering how to fly.' There is no beginning or end.. Yesterday is history. Tomorrow is a mystery. Today is a gift.
~~ Published by
BRENDA SILVEIRA
, Group Facilitator/Confidence Coach at I M Confident Niagara CanadaSo tomorrow, be aware of your surroundings. Stay present, and look for seemingly innocuous opportunities for a SACK of your own. For opportunities are all around us. We just need to look and listen past our own selfish daily needs.
Rather than waiting for long lasting, impactful change, let's remember the sage words of one of the most profound spiritual masters to ever grace our planet, Gandhi, when he professed, "BE the change you wish to see in the world." But how, exactly, can we commit to becoming that change we wish to see? Through the commitment of becoming the very group of Superheroes the world has been waiting for! There are just too many of us, people and animals alike, who require our assistance RIGHT NOW. Are YOU up for the challenge?
I believe you've been awaiting the opportunity to permanently change the world!
Well, it's time to pony up, my tribe of New Age Nerds! WE ARE THE ONES THE WORLD HAS BEEN WAITING FOR!!
BE SUPER HEROIC!
BE LOVE - SERVE ALL - INSPIRE ALWAYS
Nerdmaste,
Jeffrey Louis Martinez
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