The Author's Corner: Glory Days

What are glory days for you? Think about that for a minute. How do you define glory will answer that question. A simple two words can create page after page of those days that you have had. That first shinning star beside your name in kindergarten. The first time that you do not fall off your bike when you are learning to ride one. For most boys there is that first scar. These are just some moments when you are young and learning new things.

As you can see, there are many glory days. What we do when we get into the major ones, like the first kiss or the birth of a child and everything that comes with relationships. It may only come in the form of memories when you gaze across the living room to see your spouse as you have both aged.

Then comes the start of your first job to save up for post-secondary education if that was your choice. I know that was why I started to work at the age of fourteen. Then there is finishing your schooling and starting the career that you have always wanted to be in. Once you start that career there are many glory days to come.

Now as you sit here reading my work, all those days you did not think are glory days were just that. All of those small achievements that you made that has developed you into the person who you are. If you have made steps towards a goal or dream, no matter how big or small, those should be great days for you. Like you want to lose weight, going for the first walk is a step towards that goal. For me, when I started writing this book, it was getting done each essay that pulled it together.

If your dream is to write a book, it starts with the first word of the first sentence of the first draft. It was the same for me with my cooking career, I started at the bottom of the ladder as a dishwasher prep cook. Everything that you think is a wasted step is really not. We overlook so many things, I know that I still do, however when we stop to look at where we were twenty years ago, we can see those glory days.

As of January of 2025, it will be twenty years since I almost died and then was diagnosed with Schizophrenia. I was given a second chance at life and just waking up that day in the hospital was a blessing. Since January of 2005, I have had many glory days that I am now realizing, the biggest was becoming a published author.

All glory days that you have over your life should leave a mark on your life as you look back on them. When reaching one of your dreams, take a moment and enjoy it. The reason I say that is because so few people have a clear goal or dream that they want to reached.

Over the years I never paused to realize the achievements that I reached. I was always on to the next goal and it took almost losing my life to slow me down to realize what I had achieved. As I made the changes that I needed to do, I was shown that there is more to life than my career. In 2010 when I started my writing career, I realized that I could help those people who suffer from mental health issues in some way. Today is a glory day for me because of the simple thing that I woke up.

Tomorrow is not a promise, remember that and if you are giving another day, it is a glory day.

Stay safe.