There are a number of things that I have learned from this introspection and thought as I have relived a short version of some highlights of my longer life story. First, I have come to appreciate the gift that I received when I chose my father and mother and have found that I have been truly blessed for their influence on my life. I have not always done what they wished for me to do but, I did develop enough good habits to make my history more than it would have ever been without them to guide and influence me.
I will address my great success which my wife brought into my life later but I have no doubt that she has been the ‘instrument of my salvation’ and I am so indebted to her for her love and the companionship she has given to me.
I have also come to recognize that there were many other people, friends and fellow employees, to whom I am and will always be indebted for the influence and support they have provided. First, I must name my first Superintendent as being the best influence of anyone with whom I worked. I was not always his first choice for the positions he gave me, but, he always treated me with respect and taught me how to respect others with whom I worked – and he did it, not always through sermons, but though his example. He allowed me to make my own mistakes and never scolded me or told me that I had failed. I knew when I had erred and would attempt to never repeat those mistakes again but would use them to learn. I was so fortunate to have been able to work for him as my Superintendent.
I would also have to put my first High School Principal, just under the Superintendent for his guidance and influence on me. From the day I started working for him, he took me under his wing and helped to grow. I always considered him to be my mentor as well as my best friend. He also was the godfather for both of our girls as they were baptized in the Congregational Church and he did so as our friend—even though he was not a member of our church, but was a member of the Jehovah Witnesses.
As I said in opening statement, I wanted to use this short story of my long life as an opportunity to do an introspection of some of the things I remember and to see if I can find a lesson or two from them. I think that the main theme I found as I reflected on the various events in my life was just how tremendously blessed I have been and how so much good fortune has come my way when things seemed to be going badly. I know that I have been favored because I was born under a lucky Omen – a Rising Star. (Rising Star, Texas, that is where I was born). I do not think that so many things have turned out so well for me because I had great talents or superior intellect, but neither do I presume that all my achievements were the result of just plain ‘dumb luck’. I consider that life has treated me well because I always tended to have a positive attitude in all of the jobs I attempted and was always willing to work as hard as necessary to achieve what success I have found.
I firmly believe my strength was instilled from a mother who held great religious convictions, but especially believed firmly in the power of prayer and a father who believed in the power of honesty and hard work. I still believe in the power of hard work and, especially, when I can watch other people doing it.
I know that the most important discovery I ever made was in finding a wife who has taught me more about love and other attributes of living than anyone could ever have hoped to find. I sincerely believe that she was really the great Great Wizard for whom I was hoping to find when I set out on the yellow brick road. She has helped me to understand that the gifts for which I was searching were within me all the time as I traveled the road to Oz or Clint or Life. In finding and marrying Barbara, I truly believe that I won the grand prize, the lottery and the answer to my wildest dreams.
I find that I don’t dwell on finding eternal peace in a Heavenly home when I die nor do I fear Hell as I believe that Life has already given me enough of both to last a life time – and beyond. I believe in a Supreme Power (the energy of the entire Universe) and in the power of prayer (even if it is the power of positive thinking) and I am continuing to look for truths in which I can believe and build greater spiritual strengths in my life. I remember that I read a quote from Charles Darwin that said, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”
I have tried to be as cooperative and accommodating as I could throughout most of my life and that has helped me to sustain damage but to recover rather rapidly. Finally, I expect to do an update on this in about five years as I believe that I can think about my first 85 years and I will have a much better prospective at that time.