I’ve made many mistakes in my life.
Many of them could easily have been avoided.

Fortunately, not one of my mistakes has ended in the headlines.

Headlines

Dallas Morning News reported today that Major League baseball player, “Rangers’ Josh Hamilton has relapse with alcohol at area bar.”  USA Today, Washington Post, Fox Sports, it’s on the news, it’s filling the headlines.

“Someone went to a bar” is hardly news. “Someone had a few drinks” isn’t either.  Unless that someone is, as Jeff Passan described him, the “most famous addict in sports.”  Then, everyone who knows about you knows that that’s a problem.  Josh Hamilton’s story of self-destruction, sobriety, redemption and success have been well-documented including his autobiographical Beyond Belief: Finding the Strength to Come Back.

You learn from your parents, and your children, nieces and nephews will learn from you.  What will they learn?  Will they see success or will they see you slide? Will you reject accountability and let your pride slide you away from what really matters into an unseen hardships?

Continuing our series on freedom using quotes from the movie Braveheart, allow Princess Isabelle to lead the query, “The king will be dead in a month and his son is a weakling. Who do you think will rule this kingdom?”

That’s the question that faced David as he passed his kingship to his son Solomon. 

Tonight I mentioned that I would like to live and to die with self-respect.  I have made many mistakes, but I do not settle for “that’s the way I am.”  Our world is filled with low expectation.  It’s too easy to have low standards.

I intentionally live the way I wish that other people did.  Rather than complain and judge others for not being this or that I strive to fess up when I screw up, or blame no one for my choices. I am accountable and want to help others by my example first, my words second.

One day while clowning around with my skateboard I rolled it across the floor.  I ran up to my deck and launched myself chest-first onto my deck like I was running in the water and diving onto a surfboard.  It was a cool idea…in my head; until I hit my head.

I didn’t account for the fact that when I landed my neck would flex.  It did.  My head snapped down.  My chin hit the floor.  I split my chin to the bone shearing off a chunk of my chin bone.

Last night as I sat in a TreeHouse support group I was awed with the humility and accountability of the teens present. They listened patiently and compassionately.

Directly and indirectly each teen reminded the other that “this is a safe place.”

Each teen who wanted caring support received it. And, remembering previous concerns, teens asked one another about issues and concerns that were mentioned in previous groups.

Without breaking confidentiality, similar questions include “How’s it going with…?”, “You said that…?”, “Wait, did you…or didn’t you?”