Legacy

Looking back on my relatively short life, I KNOW I've made a LOT of mistakes. I've hurt a LOT of people, and been hurt deep to my core. I've loved, hated, lost, found, been ecstatically happy, and sat in the pit of despair, the whole spectrum, I think it's safe to say I've experienced it.

All these things have shaped me into the man I am today. I've learned who I want to be, from them, and who I no longer wish to be. I've learned.... And I think that is important....Through my learning these life lessons, I've been able to change, not against my self, nor for anyone else, but I've changed for me, into a better person.(or so I dearly hope) I don't think that I went through everything to be stagnant, and unchanging, clinging to what I once thought was the "ideal" me.... Mostly because THAT ideal me, was throughly unhappy as a whole... I know that now looking back.

I want to leave behind a legacy that my kids can be proud of, that my family and friends can be proud of. I try my hardest, to make them my priority, family and friends, because I've (felt like) been without, there was a period when I was a jerk (big time understatement) and felt abandoned by everyone I thought I knew. I don't ever want to feel that, nor have any of my loved ones go through it. So I do my hardest to let them know what they are to me, that I love them, not just in word, but in action. I hope to pass that on. The biggest things in life are friends and family, they are dear to me, and should know that.

Life is so short sometimes, and we can't be timid and simply watch it pass us by. "Grab life by the horns" they say, and "they're" right! There is stuff out there I never knew of, right in my backyard. I've found INCREDIBLE beauty in the wilderness since I started hiking every weekend, my only regret, is not starting last year, 5 years ago, 10 years ago....15 years ago, get the picture?? I wanna leave behind an example of how important it is to get out and experience everything a person can in life.

Although I am, I don't want to be remembered as the BBQ guy, the car guy, or the guy that likes lifting weights. I want to be remembered as a friend. A type of friend, dad and husband that was always there when needed, for fun, or for comfort, that followed through on promises made. I want to be that friend ALWAYS with open arms, and open doors to friend or family in need or just to visit. I want to be remembered as THAT friend that pushed everyone around me to be their best version of themselves. I want to be an inspiration to them. I want to be a REAL friend, like I've written about previously, to be a part of someone's soul.

I don't know how many folks I've impacted, but I hope it's been positive. I hope somehow if inspired you. I know I've been inspired by a lot of my friends, in ways I don't know if I can ever express to them, in words. But know, I'll never forget what you've instilled in my life, and because of it, I'm a better person.

That's the kind of legacy I want to leave behind, one of inspiration, always trying to be a better human.