Me...Take Two
Mrs. Dalkey espoused the virtue of coloring inside the lines. Kindergarten, you see, was just the beginning.
Then there were Cub Scout kerchiefs (didn’t last but a few weeks under that regime), clip-on ties, single-file lines, perfectly sculpted cursive, and the fear of going too long between trips to confession.
Rules. Play by the rules, dammit!
High school, then college, then a job, 40 years with the man, then a gold watch. Simple, clean, cut and dried. Damn good plan. Just play by the rules and everything will be fine.
Like a grocery list, I checked off the accomplishments. One after another, until my resume was quite tasty.
But I am me. And deep inside me is a personality that, from that first crayon mishap, railed against the norm.
Today is March 8, 2015. This is my first rebirth day. Corny, yeah. But it’s what people who come close to cashing it in call that day when they survived, when they cheated death, when they were given a chance…a second chance…to get things right.
A year ago today, I was nearly felled by a dangerous cardiac arrhythmia. Most don’t survive. My mother didn’t. But for some reason, I did. So today I’m launching a life-long project called 2nd Takes. The intent is not to develop the next wildly successful invention, craft literature that will live on for centuries, or bore you with inane updates that waste your precious time. My goal is simply this…to do something purposeful with my 2nd Take. To live, observe, communicate, to drink in life. And hopefully somewhere along the line inspire you and others to do the same.
Life gets weird. Priorities become jumbled. We forget that our lives were meant to be enjoyed along the way, not just to work, earn money, pay bills, and build a retirement fund hoping that we’ll actually live long enough to…live.
Do something fun today. Something purposeful. Create something. Learn something new. Here’s a start…read my favorite poem by Robert Frost. This might help you understand more about my 2nd Take.
Time to get living. Hope to catch you soon.
tc
