Growing up.

 

“I took month-long vacations in the stratosphere, 

and you know it's really hard to hold your breath 

Swear I lost everything I ever loved or feared,

I was the cosmic kid in full costume dress

Well, my feet they finally took root in the earth, 

but I got me a nice little place in the stars 

And I swear I found the key to the universe

in the engine of an old parked car.”

Growing up is different for everyone. I have heard stories that are similar to mine, and I have heard others that couldn’t be any further to what my early years were like in a suburb of St. Louis, MO.

I really believe a lot has to do with the following: What your parents instilled in you, who your friends were and birth order. I can say my parents instilled what I believe are very straightforward traits—respect others, don’t be too confident, and make sure to say “please and thank you.” This is what I would say they provided me, since my sister now reads “Snap.Shot.” everyday, she might have a completely different perspective. 

Friends are the ones who helped develop my spirit. I went through several sets of them over the years and only one has truly stuck since I was 15. I am fine with this because we talk several times a week and we travel back to the good ol’ days that would have made my parents say, “how did we raise you?” I guess in this respect, the traits they instilled in me kind of fell apart. But boy did I have fun. How I made it through pretty much unscathed I can only attribute to 100% pure luck. 

One of my friends from long ago would drive through the streets—fast—-and if there was a stop, yield, or any type of sign, he would run right through it. Yes, there were close calls but we laughed all along the way. It was one night when I was not in the car when he was traveling too fast and ran off the road and dropped of what I am told was 20 feet below. He was okay, his car was not. That could have been me in the car…but it wasn’t. Again, 100% pure luck.

I was pretty fortunate being the youngest in the family. My parents had already been through all of the dealings of my brother and sister and they were pretty much immune to what I did. Don’t get me wrong, there were a few times when I didn’t get away with it, but I was much more fortunate being the youngest; this is probably why my wife, who was the oldest in her family, thinks I “might” be immature. What??

The photo above was taken at the Willis Tower (AKA Sears Tower) a few years ago. Somehow I convinced someone who I didn’t know, to go out on “the ledge,” which is 1,353 feet above the ground, and do a hand stand. I don’t remember what I said to him, but I am pretty sure I mentioned doing this was all about “growing up.”

Thanks for stopping by.