THE FRONT PORCH SWING

Oh, the memories. I remember my girls spending countless hours swinging front to back and side to side, hanging out with the neighborhood kids, splashing with the water hose, or crafting top-secret plans with their imaginations. It was awesome.

How times have changed.

With my two youngest girls slowly nearing college graduation and my older girls working hard in their careers, the days of simple life are taken over by group texts and long-distance daily check-ins. It’s just not the same.

I’m sure that every parent, at some point, has or will experience something similar and as our children grow into their future selves and start adulting, it seems my role as a father has evolved from fixing flat tires and ouchies to being a guide on financial literacy, paying bills encouraging a healthy diet (which took me 45 years to figureout), sleeping schedules (which took me 46 years to figureout) and gratitude (which I thankfully learned early on).

I have so much to be grateful for…

…even though there is so much uncertainty and constant change all around us, I am grateful.

Change…. my Mom is also getting older and almost at the point where I think of her as one of my little girls. I find myself saying things like “be careful on the stairs!” or “did you eat today?” or “Mom! The bank is not offering you $2000. This is an advertisement”. With the rise of scams (which I will speak to in a future post, like how I listed a vacant lot for a scammer), I almost can’t decide if I am more overwhelmed by fake calls and spam emails or constant 2-factor authentication requests.

What gives me calm is the unrelenting belief that no matter what life puts in front of us, we will learn from it, we may bleed from it, and we will blossom from within. Time spent with loved ones, family and friends, clients and peers, the new and the life-long, we are in this life together experiencing it by the pressures or intentions we’ve chosen to abide by.

Choices….sounds so trivial, and maybe even cliche, but I’ve often said, “I live a self-inflicted life.” Today, I choose to believe that it is a great day! I just wrote my first LinkedIn blog post! (which no one will read or will wonder what I’m ultimately selling).

Today, I am selling myself to the idea that we may connect in the future over coffee or comments and have meaningful conversations around topics that help people navigate the core basics of life with hopes of bringing satisfaction and a smile to their day.

Thank you for reading, and please share your stories. You matter. We matter. Let’s experience life by learning and lifting each other up so life can feel as sunny and simple as the days of swinging on the front porch swing.