Archive for January 6th, 2010

End of a Decade

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

Well, last week was the end of the decade. As I rushed around after work running errands I didn’t have anything on my mind other than getting to the AHL hockey game on time.

I sat through the game with my father and found different thoughts racing through my head in the down time. I thought back to the beginning of the same decade that would end later that night.

It was the year 2000 and I had purchased my first home the year before. I was settling into life and I felt as if I had the world by the tail. Heck, my house was only a block away from where I grew up and I had great neighbors on all sides as well. Life was good. My little pup was 5 years old and he finally had a run that allowed him to roam freely through the yard. He too was loving life.

As the years passed things became more of a routine and I might have let a few things go too far before properly addressing them. I’ll never know for sure and I don’t waste a whole lot of time thinking about it because we can’t ever go back in time.

I can recall getting a computer after moving into the new house. Shortly after becoming familiar with it I thought that it would be pretty neat if I could write a book.  One day I got out of work, clicked the computer on and started punching keys. I drew up an outline on what I would like to do and saved it in My Documents. Every once in a while I would open up the folder and glance at my outline. On a few occasions I even began writing the chapters that I had outlined. However, I never felt like I had very much support and I felt somewhat empty.  That’s when I put my idea on the back-burner and decided it was probably a lost cause.

In 2006 I was cruising down the freeway when all the wheels suddenly fell off the bus. In retrospect it was probably the best thing that ever could have happened to me. It brought me back to how unfair life can sometimes be. Far too many people give in at that point instead of finding another way. However, I stared into the lion’s mouth and decided I would set new goals and try my hardest to achieve them, no matter how long it might take.

The following year I accepted everything that had happened and that old idea that I had in My Documents at the beginning of the decade resurfaced. I had enough time and I needed to do something to keep my mind off from the negative things that had transpired the previous year and continued on a daily basis.

I chose to dig in and write the book. I started writing and before I knew it I was done. It only took three weeks to write the book, but it has taken me almost three more years to lay it out and get it in book format. I learned many things about book publishing, paginating and the other intracacies that go along with it. I never imagined that it would take me this long to complete the goal, especially when the actual writing was done almost three years ago.

Now, I’m only a few days away from picking the book up from the printer. Many people have asked me if I’m proud or have a sense of accomplishment. As odd as it sounds I really don’t have any of those feelings. The only thing I feel is that I should have been done much sooner. If I have any type of success I think I will try to write another one. Since I know how things work a little better now, it will make the next one easier.

So that night when I closed the shade on another decade I understood that life may not have taken me where I wanted to go when it started, but it surely brought me to where I was meant to be.

I’ve become close with people who have helped me in more ways than they can imagine. I thank each and every one of you. With the first goal behind me I’m going to try my hardest to achieve the next one within two years. I’ve recently set another goal behind that which will keep me pressing forward. I’m going to try to write another book. I would like it to be a book with funny hunting stories. I still haven’t ditched the idea of a novel, but I need my own office in a perfect place to accomplish that. I will give it my best effort when it’s time.

Although New Year’s Eve could have been a sad night for me due to many distant memories, I made the most of it and thanked my lucky stars. I only hope that the road I’m on will lead me to a valley filled with the things I love without any outside interference. We all choose the paths that we follow and although my choices are not easy, I have a better idea of where I need to end up to attain my lifelong goals.