Decisions

Give them hell! Or, show the incarcerated a glance of compassion, if that is possible. Oh, but for a few decisions different on anyone's part in the mix of life, and we could have been "them." My own father was incarcerated in Amarillo for passing a bad check once in the 60's. He lived his own version of hell. I am glad that my grandfather, the grumpy old man that he was, had compassion enough to get my father out of jail. We too, lived in my Dad's version of hell. It was brutal, and I would not wish that on any child in the universe. Ever.

We have an amazing existence. Oh, but for a few decisions different on anyone's part in the mix of life...

Hicks Killingsworth
2017 International Copyright Reserved

1 May 2017

My son turned 30-years-old today. Where did the time go?! I am mesmerized that he was a laughing, giddy child only yesterday. It is as if the rotating of the sun, moon, and stars has accelerated and I can only stand by as an observer now. 

I am laughing and crying in the same moment at the thought. We run as fast as we can, in the effort to provide for a child, to teach him our very best thought processes, and to hope with everything in us that he will survive the turmoil and chaos.

And in the resounding turning of the child into a 30-year-old, I am reminded at just how brief the moments have become. I am proud of the man he represents, in that he works hard, he's so smart, and he has grasped the goodness of being a kind soul. 

I am pleased that he survived those years too hard to even think upon. Life has held incredible challenges for us. He survived a parental marriage disaster. He forced his way through the chaos of our 2,000 mile move back to the South Central, of an impending change to a new school, of our vehicle being broken into, our apartment being ravaged by criminals, severe vehicle accidents, more Raman noodles than a child should have to consume, a weary mother with a scoundrel of a father who could not find common ground. 

He forged his way through the teenage years, with basketball on his agenda, every second of every day, and all the things that go along with changes occurring in the middle school and high school years. 

Thankfully, the young man survived college and crazy fraternity brothers, and the drive that got him through working numerous jobs to finalize the degree. He drove endless hours to get north into the Ohio Valley, when the job-market presented the opportunity to work there. (I still have no idea how he stayed awake hour after hour without sleep!)

He pushed through during eighty hour work weeks to finalize a master's degree in a top-ranked, world-class energy program, with severe sleep deprivation.  

Today, I realized that bringing a child into the world holds the greatest joy a mother can know. Experiencing life alongside that child, now grown into a 30-year-old productive citizen, is about the best opportunity I will have to gain hope for the future of humanity. 

Life has been good to us. Thirty years good! 

Hicks Killingsworth

International Copyright Reserved