BRICK WALLS

From as early as I can remember, I knew that I would settle for nothing less than a bachelor's degree as my educational goal. Never mind that I was "oil field trash". Never mind that I had no money and was too proud for "loans" (beside "loans" had to be paid back and: the money thing again). Never mind that no one in the Waller family (that I knew of) had ever done that in the history of the world. I JUST KNEW THAT IT WAS SOMETHING I WANTED, NEEDED, AND DESIRED VERY DEEPLY.

I wanted to play football for as long as I can remember. I didn't just want to be on the team, I wanted to make a difference, be a leader, and be able to look back over the years and know that I had given it my best effort. Never mind that I was undertall, skinny and short on talent, IT WAS JUST SOMETHING THAT I FELT MY LIFE WOULD NOT BE COMPLETE WITHOUT.

I have always known that at the end of my professional life (no matter what I did to earn my living) I wanted to always be able to look back and feel good about what I had done. I wanted to feel that I had made a positive difference in the world. When someone asked me what I did to earn my living, I knew that I wanted to be able to answer that question with pride. THIS WAS SACRED TO ME IN TERMS OF BEING TRUE TO "ME".

None of the above was easy. Some aspects of it near tore out my guts, soul and sanity, but with the Lord's own blessing, I made it happen.

Bottom line: BRICK WALLS ARE THERE TO LET US KNOW HOW MUCH WE WANT IT.

Children of mine, never mind how difficult the task, how long the road, or how unbelievably frustrating the world may become, it is all part of becoming YOU.