thelastasthmatic

one of my supervisors asked the other day why i have the word "big" on my name tag. i told him it was to remind me to always think big...





see, i know how easy it is to let things get you down. the desire to succeed,
the pressure from family and friends, and the manipulations of those who would
see you fail all add to the day to day moments of truth that lead to
accomplishing your goals. the payoff is always sweeter when the work is harder
and the struggle is greater. it reminds me of the first softball game i played
for the company team.

i hit the ball on the first (crappy)swing, bouncing it just out of the pitcher's
reach and on the way to the third baseman. i threw the bat to the fence and
started pumping my legs for dear life. i could see our first base coach
motioning to me and the first baseman looking for the ball( which i knew was
whistling it's way to him) when all of a sudden my legs froze in mid-step. my
body pitched forward with momentum, leaving me sprawled in the dirt. over the
crowd's roar of laughter i could hear the coach yelling, "touch the bag! touch
the bag!" i imagined i looked like a fish out of water as i undulated and clawed
my way forward. with a final lunge through a cloud of dust, my hand grasped the
bag- i had made it. i stood up and brushed at the dust covering the length of my
body, noticing the rather large and bleeding strawberries on both knees. i looked
to the laughing and cheering crowd and offered a thumbs up-i had made it.

i was not about to let the pain, humiliation, or newton's law of gravity get in
the way of reaching that bag. my reward was standing in the sun, listening to
the word "safe" sound above the noise of the crowd. i've felt the same sense of
elation at work, after experiencing similar obstacles.

i've worked a ridiculous amount of overtime. the tasks i've been assigned have
ranged from overseeing the processing of millions of dollars of product, to
scraping tape off the warehouse floor. and there have been many associates watch
me constantly for any mistake or sign of weakness, waiting to pounce like
jackals and play some part in ending my career. but i am still here.

the overtime served it's purpose by showing my loyalty to the company. i never
compromised my integrity in any of my assigned tasks, and no matter how
mundane-executed them with the highest work ethic. and the scavengers that stood
to see me fall are still standing in the place they were years ago-their
character keeping them stagnant. i have come through the cloud of dust to hold
one of the most sought after jobs in the plant.

and it won't end here.

trust me, kids-

think big...


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update: the forgetmenot's are thinking big (since my dumb ass left them out in the cold last night), and still growing strong...