Circumstances and More...

Alright so much for me dedicating a few minutes each day to writing; there were a set of circumstances that preventing me from sitting down. One of these circumstances had my laptop put on resuscitation measures since it crashed very hard and was out of commission for almost one week. The timing was very suspect in all of this because the laptop turned one year old and with it the warranty expired and wouldn’t you know it the very next day after receiving notification of the warranty expiring the laptop crashed; coincidence or a vast conspiracy??? I am not one who is big on conspiracy theories but I am also not into coincidences so I guess it fell somewhere in between!! Additionally I could have used our regular computer but I just didn’t allocate the time to sit down and write these past 10 days and I do apologize.

Happy belated Mother’s Day to all the Mother’s and by the way if anyone really cares what is happening in my life they can always find my Facebook page which gives a snapshot usually on a daily basis. Mother’s Day was extremely nice as we joined our dear friends for an afternoon on the beach. We arrived a little later than planned (but really with us we always seem to be behind schedule!) however; the afternoon was great with a picnic on the beach and a Scrabble game for the adults. The children were very brave and went in the water while the adults watched from a far. The interesting thing about the beaches in Southern California is the air temperature which seems to drop precipitously as the afternoon went on; I was very cold as the sun was setting but the children were having a grand old time splashing around in the water; oh to be young again!!

Mother’s Day did mark another “first” for me as I was finally able to be with my wife on Mother’s day for the first time since 2006 yes, there were two Mother’s Days I missed and I think that concludes the “first” events as life moves along at a very rapid pace. Life maybe moving on at a rapid pace but each day is so enjoyable. I do marvel at how well everything is progressing and yes, this is a direct result of recovery. In the past few weeks I have noticed a few of my friends struggle with their daily lives and the stresses of life inevitably seem to creep up on them. I constantly remind myself to “stay in the moment” and yes, enjoy each and every moment as they occur. I have never had the clarity I have had and this is another direct result of recovery.

Speaking of recovery this past week I concluded my “counseling” sessions with one of our clients at work. Yes, I had the honor and pleasure of sitting with a fellow compulsive gambler three times a week for at least an hour each time (we always went well past the hour). This was so rewarding and I was certainly blessed with the right “client” as he certainly had a very good foundation prior to my “guidance”!! I wouldn’t say it was a counseling session as much as it was reinforcing the principles of the Gamblers Anonymous Program. I went through an excellent resource provided by GA and this was the basis of our sessions.

I am beyond fortunate to have been able to assist in any way I could and really this helped me as much maybe even more than it helped the other person. I did enjoy those sessions and I pray that this person truly “walks the walk” because they had the “talk” down from the onset. I did take a cue from our Clinical Director asking on a scale of zero to ten with zero being “never to gamble again” and ten being “yes, I will gamble again”; the answer I received was a very heartfelt “ZERO!” According to our Clinical Director this is a very good indicator that the person will do very well as they move forward in recovery. Yes, I did my best and it wasn’t very difficult at all; I just instilled the things that have been passed down to me from some of the long time members and newer members of GA. It was very cool to have this opportunity and the best part is I made a friend in the process; recovery is indeed wonderful.

The children are doing very well; yes, my daughter has completed her softball season and won’t be on the All-Stars because she couldn’t commit to the full schedule; this is just as well and even though she was a little taken a back she has gotten over it very quickly. My son continues with his baseball season and last week I had arranged a private session for the team with a professional baseball player. The team really enjoyed the lesson but the very next day they went out and promptly lost not being able to hit anything!! I don’t believe it had anything to do with the private lesson but the timing was less than desirable. The great thing about 8 year olds is that the final score does not matter as much as what is the snack at the end of the game. After the snacks were devoured the game was a distance memory. I swear the adult coaches take so much more seriously than the kids!!! My son has three more games to go and then the playoffs. He also has the opportunity to make the All Star team but again since he will miss 2 ½ weeks his chances are certainly lessened.

Yesterday Wayman Tisdale passed away at the young age of 44; yes, in a few months I will be this same age. Mr. Tisdale fought a courageous battle with cancer over the past two years before losing that battle. I am writing this because I followed his career for the past 20 years. He was a star college basketball player and went on to have a very solid professional career but that isn’t the half of it; he was a very accomplished jazz musician making several very popular albums. I have listened to some of those albums and they are incredible. I do remember his college playing days and I must say there was something different about his style compared to his contemporaries and now I understand why. He wasn’t about being a star basketball player he was about being himself. He did make great music and I am very saddened by his loss. This does reiterate to me the need to enjoy every moment because it is all fleeting. I have no idea what tomorrow will bring but I do know today is a gift. I continue to enjoy these gifts one at a time as I move forward in recovery; yes, it is a wonderful life through an through!!