5
" In some aspects losing a child is like a wall, but instead of getting over it, you must carry the wall with you, wherever you go, for as long as you live.
The wall is immovable.
You can’t go anywhere until you learn to move the wall.
You are just stuck in the same place, forever.
You can tug and tug all you want, there are days that the wall will not move.
And there are days that it moves ever so slightly.
Over time I have realized that in order to move forward, knowing that I must bring this wall with me, that the best way to do so is to metaphorically flood the soil near the wall with water, and have the wall float with me, instead of me having to carry it.
Every act of love and kindness turns to water.
Water and love can penetrate and move anything.
It just takes time.
I need to turn my wall into a raft. "
― , Again (Every Breath Is Gold #2)
6
" There is a club in this world that you do not join knowingly.
One day you are just a member.
It is “The life changing events club.”
The fee to join the club is hurt beyond belief, payable in full, up front for a lifetime membership.
The benefit of the club is a new found perspective on life, and a deep understanding that you may not be happy about your current situation, but you can be happy in your current situation.
The only rule to the club is that you cannot tell anyone that you are a member.
The club does not provide a directory of its members, but when you look into a member’s eye, you can tell that they too are part of the club. Members are allowed to exchange that brief eye contact that says: “I didn’t know.”
Being a member of this club is the last thing that anyone initially wants in their life.
Being a member of this club is the best thing that ever happens to a person in their life, and there is not a person in the club that would ever give up their membership.
If you really look and know what you are looking for you can spot the clubs members; they are the ones that provide a random act of kindness and do something for someone who can never repay them for what they have done. They are the people spreading joy and optimism and lifting people’s spirits even when their own heart has been broken.
I have paid my dues; my lifetime membership arrived today, not by mail, but by a deep inner feeling that I cannot describe.
It is the best club that I never wanted to be part of.
But I am glad that I am a member. "
― , 6 Minutes Wrestling With Life: (Every Breath Is Gold #1)
17
" You see twenty-six years ago, when I was in high school, my goal and mission in life was to win a New York State Wrestling Championship.
I committed myself to a lifestyle, made the sacrifices, put in the time, starved myself, shaved my head, had the hunger, desire and determination, but I came up short.
For many years, after I graduated it seemed like I got nothing out of my six years of total dedication to the sport. That the trade off of what I gave and what I got in return to this sport was way out of whack.
I hated wrestling for it.
To put every ounce of your soul into achieving something and to get nothing out of it in return was beyond my comprehension and could not be justified in my head.
Until I had adversity in my life.
And slowly but surely I started realizing how much the sport of wrestling actually has given back to me. Much more than I ever knew.
When life throws you to your back, you need to know how not to get pinned, get off of your back and do enough to make up the difference in order to win. "
― , 6 Minutes Wrestling With Life: (Every Breath Is Gold #1)