God is Good

Susan B. Anthony once said, ~ Sooner or later we all discover that the important moments in life are not the advertised ones, not the birthdays, the graduations, the weddings, not the great goals achieved. The real milestones are less possessing. They come to the door of memory unannounced, stray dogs that amble in, sniff around a bit, and simply never leave. Our lives are measured by these.~ Ladies and gentlemen, today is my 29th birthday, which marks a day of celebration, but I would much rather celebrate the past 29 years of my semi-middled aged life by reflecting on those far less funny, embarrassing, as well as, undesirable moments that essentially have my journey up to this point in my life such an interesting ride, so to speak.

If you think about it, there are certain moments in life that we all tend to block out when we're young until something or someone flips a proverbial switch that has us remembering bits and pieces of that particular situation. One such moment in my young life that I subsequently blocked out until several years ago was when at the age of 5 I apparently fell out of a moving car on the way to school. For what I could remember and my mom telling me was that as she turned left on a four way intersection, the door opened, I fell out, then slid across the street, and according to her I simply sat up stunned. Primarily, the only thing that saved me from serious injury as I hit the ground and slid across the street was wearing my backpack.

In any case, it's been said that your high school years are the best years of your life as you share moments that are memorable and try to leave the bad one's behind. Being a military kid, I spent 2 1/2 years attending high school overseas and of all the great moments that I've shared with the Class of 96', there was one embarrassing moment that tends to stand out, which my former classmates may remember. It was the time I got lost in a mall trying to find the exit we came in from during an either sophomore or junior field trip off base. To make a long story short I found a security guard who was actually waiting for me, escorted me to the correct exit, and needless to say I did the walk of shame to a bus full of disappointed classmates.

Let me ask you this question, if you've been in a car wreck can you still vividly remember it like it was yesterday. Without a doubt, being in a car wreck is considered one of the most traumatizing, shocking, and humiliating moments in life...trust me I know. It truly humbles you as your only mode of transportation is one the shelf, in a manner of speaking, and during one's time away from behind the wheel you go through so many different scenarios in your head as to how you could have avoided the accident that you end up mentally torturing yourself. Let me tell you something, I can remember my car wreck like it was yesterday and even though I've been able to put that situation behind me I still get a little leary whenever it rains.

In retrospect, I don't regret any unfortunate moments of the past 29 years of my life because God has a reason for putting me through it. Anyways, when it comes to the moments that tend to make me cringe, its ultimately overshadowed by the moments that truly matter in life that not only make me laugh, but also smile as well. Whether its having friends who will always have your back, a roof over my head, my health, reconnecting with former classmates/friends after 10 years, having a job that I enjoy working at where I can make a difference in a child's life, or having parents who still continue to care about me care even though I occasionally do stupid things, all I can say in the end is God is good.