The View from the Classroom

I know it’s a little late, but I don’t have the free time I had in the summer, so I write when I can.  I had intended to write this on Tuesday, but better late than never, right?

Say "September 11" and any American knows what you’re referring to.  Like most of you, I remember details of that day like it happened yesterday even though I was many miles away and had no one close to me personally impacted by the day’s events.  However, unlike most of you, I have another reason for remembering September 11 in such vivid detail.  My birthday.  Yes, my birthday is September 11. 

2001.  Earlier that year, my mom passed away from lung cancer after being a lifelong smoker finding it hard to quit even after being diagnosed.  Earlier that year, I was laid off a job for the first time in my life.  And, that very same year, on the 35th anniversary of my birth, the country was being terrorized.  I spent that day glued to the tv, in shock, crying, trying to make sense of something so tragic happening on the very day that I should have been celebrating my life.  Was it fair for me to celebrate amidst such tragedy?  What message was I supposed to get from this?  What lesson was I to learn?  There had to be SOME reason this was happening on MY birthday!!

I must say that 2001 was a major turning point in my life.  With all of the aforementioned events occurring one after another, it would have been easy to continue on the path I was on…sleepwalking through my life, going through the motions…to let the events get me down.  September 11, though, woke me up so to speak.  I really got that life is a gift and we never know when it will end.  I made a decision that year to change my life.  It wasn’t a sudden thing and the changes definitely took a long time to materialize, but the decision was there.

First, I changed careers.  Not easy given the amount of money I was used to making and one of the scariest things I ever did.  Sacrifices had to be made, but, in the end, well worth it.

Next up…I tackled my physical self…started eating a little better and eventually started working out some.  Like a lot of people though, I was inconsistent and thus, results were too.  However, unlike most people, I didn’t give up.  I had made the decision to do it and by God, I was going to do it.  I just needed to get serious.  So I did.  In the fall of 2005 (yes, it took awhile), sitting in a room full of overweight teachers (self included) in staff development, I was thinking to myself, we’re supposed to be role models!  I get disgusted with myself thinking about the fat, out-of-shape person I let myself turn into.  That was the exact moment though that I chose to "get serious".

The rest is history so to speak.  I got serious, got in shape, started really living my life instead of going through the motions.  I’m proud to say I’m 41.  I look and feel better (in my opinion) than I’ve ever looked or felt in my entire life.  I could run circles around the person I was at 35 or even 25 for that matter.  Yes, 2001 was a year of tragedy, but, at the same time, a turning point in my life that I must remember.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 16th, 2007 at 12:09 pm and is filed under Other. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.