Tests in Life

I have a recent high school graduate who is going to be taking a test to join the Navy in a few days. She has thought about this for the last year or so. She is a sharp student and a great individual. The challenge is that so often tests don’t necessarily show the true character or ability of a person. I have others around me who totally lose it when they have to take tests. They will have studied and done a fair amount of preparation but will have total amnesia on the day of the test. What gives?? Why is one person able to actually remember and the other person has a brain ‘fart’.

I have enjoyed reading different short quotes on LinkedIn over the last couple of years. The one that caught my eye, it’s not that profound, says the following; while everyone was arguing about the cup being half full or half empty I went ahead and drank the water in the cup! I have been raised from birth to be someone that is an optimist because God is at the center of life. I know that life is a combination of, sunny days, rainy days and cloudy days. I clearly prefer sunny days to the cloudy and obviously would rather avoid tragedy and heartache. Yet, I know that life includes walking through green pastures but also going through valleys and hills that are barren.

I have faced a few tragedies in my life over the years. The most difficult at present was watching my mom slowly die over a period of years from cancer. She was a very strong person that taught me how to face difficult news, adjust life to make it the best possible and then to live one day at a time. I will always remember the look on her face each time I would say good bye, she would say, ‘Don’t cry, you know I love you and one day we will be together again when I won’t have to suffer.’ She would seldom ever let me really know how difficult her life was at that point.

I was privileged to be around my dad as a special friend and helper the last 4 years of his life. My dad was a very positive person who seldom would talk about his childhood that wasn’t the best. He chose to never allow his past to stop him from achieving his goals. His memory loss disease overshadowed the last few years of my dad’s life. It forced me to see that conversations were more about being together than correcting my dad about his travels over the years or activities with my mom. I know initially this test in my life forced me to let go of being right and allow my dad to make up his fascinating stories about his Air Force travels all over the world.

I watched a movie last night that brought back all of my emotions and fears of facing death, whether that’s my immediate family or my own. It helped remind me that the real test in life is being real at the moment. It’s too easy to live in the past or the future and not cherish the present. I know that each day with my dad was always a lot of fun. I never knew what to expect from him but a huge smile and always a BIG THANKS for taking him out. He would always make silly jokes about escaping from his Memory Loss Facility. We would drive around one of the big parks and sip on milkshakes.

I confess that it is too easy to always be in a rush to see how much more you can cram in a day thinking that being busy is what it is all about. I’ve had the privilege of having little kids live with me over the last month or so. They force me to slow down and live life a bowl of cereal at a time. Yes, my awesome wife reminds me daily to look up at the stars in the sky or take the time to fill the duck food bag. Amazing what a difference taking your dogs for a walk early in the morning and late at night makes in your life.