It's Coming Soon

During the visit with my dear friends yesterday, they were telling me about a cruise they booked. They are huge fans of cruises and I listened intently. This particular cruise was quite inexpensive, but what struck me the most was the fact that the cruise is scheduled for after my release date. They mentioned the dates of the cruise and I thought (out loud), “Hey, wait a minute, I will be out of here by that time.” I am under the 8 month mark and my friends are scheduling a cruise outside of my incarceration period. I guess my release is coming soon because vacations are being planned and life continues to move forward. On the 12th will be the one year anniversary of my sentencing date!

I have many things to look forward to in the coming months. Next week I will see my family for the first time since last year. In September my mother and sister will arrive for a visit. The time is moving swiftly and with all these visits (especially my dear friends who come on a regular basis) time moves even faster. I know I am a better person today than I have even been and I strive each and everyday to be better and better.

Unbelievably there wasn’t a single fire call all last night. This was the Fourth of July and this part of southern California is in a severe drought with very dry brush, yet there was not one fire call. This is fine by me, especially since I was informed that my daughter is very concerned with the fact that I am a firefighter of wildland fires. Last week even the East Coast news showed the wildland fires in South Lake Tahoe. My daughter saw this on television and asked my wife if I was at the fire and was very concerned with my safety. She is a worrier so my wife did all she could to put my daughter’s mind at ease. I do firmly believe there is a reason why my crew has only been on the one fire since my arrival. There hasn’t been a shortage of wildfires in the past 2 weeks, yet I have remained in the safety of the camp this entire time. I’m not sure what lies ahead this fire season, but I do need to have a talk with my daughter regarding what I do during wildfires. The main focus is on safety and I practice this all the time.

Many of my fellow crew members and camp members were astounded that there was no fire call sounded last night. A few of these members stated that there has been a fire call every 4th of July for at least the past 4 years. The string was broken last night as I turned in at my usual bedtime. I did have an opportunity to read one more chapter of The Power of INTENTION before falling off to sleep. This book continues to captivate me in so many ways. It is so much more than positive thinking it is positive living through and through. Also, trusting God (spiritual God as the creator of everyone and everything) is paramount to the Power of Intention. I am so happy I chose to read this book because it is indeed changing how I think and believe. I am slowly removing my ego and my “I’m better than most” attitude. I have replaced this with everyone is God’s creation and we are all filled with goodness. I will no longer state “even in a place like this” because “this place” is exactly where I belong. I lost focus of a positive way of living and ended up right where I belong. The quote. “We reap what we sow, “ is correct. I gave out negative thoughts and emotions and got back negative consequences. My life was not completely negative, in fact I was practicing the principles in the Power of Intention without even knowing it. I am ensconced in nothing but love from my family and dear friends. This love has been instilled inside of me and radiates outward. I temporarily lost my way, but now I have definitely found my way and it is truly wonderful. I am gaining so much insight as I read this book. When I do finish reading, I will NOT be finished with it because it has permeated to my core being. There are so many outstanding techniques such as visualization and positive self-talk. These must become part of who I am and I have incorporated them in my daily affairs.

Another critical component is meditation. I do need to incorporate this into my daily life. There is a perfect place for mediation in camp. There is a pond with a man-made waterfall. The sound of it is so peaceful and serene. I need to find time to meditate near the waterfall in order to get closer to the Source. Whoever designed the waterfall was a very intelligent person. It reminds me of the one we had in our pool with the rock formations. The one is camp is much larger. In the evening, the sun sets behind it and creates an even more peaceful serene setting. Ideally I would like to meditate at this time, but there are usually a few fellow inmates near this area making mediation a bit challenging. The early morning hours when I am outside exercising do create a perfect time for meditation. I just need to devote myself much better to this pursuit.

The five day weekend had come to an end and my crew along with another crew were on a strike team which consists of two crews, 3 captains, and 2 CO’s who go to a fire usually out of county. We were waiting word on whether or not we would be going to Santa Barbara to fight a wildfire. Much like last week when our crew was supposed to go to Lake Tahoe, but we didn’t go to either one. This is so strange because there are fires all around yet my crew remains without a single fire hour in almost six weeks. Our assignment today with 2 replacement Captains was to work on the septic system down below the camp. This seems to be our preferred assignment as the crew has worked on it several times. There is plenty of work down there probably for the next 6 months. This area used to house the running track, baseball field, and handball court, but now it is a construction zone in everyway. I do wonder if I will get to run on this track while I am here and if I had to guess I would say not likely. Anyhow, the morning was spent filling a trench and raking rocks in 100 plus degree heat. The backhoe broke down and that was it for the day which happened at lunchtime. The rest of the day was keeping busy and the last hour, the Engineer took us for a ride so he could get experience driving the bus. It was a good thing the backhoe broke down because it was much too hot to be working outside. Summer is definitely here!