With Age Comes Wisdom

I have not written an article on LinkedIn since last year. I've been concentrating on my music, TV an Film scripts. With that said, here's my latest thoughts, hope you enjoy.

We all wonder when we're younger in life, what we're going to do for work, what job(s) would we like to do, where do we see ourselves in 5, 10, 25 years later? Are we successful yet, or are we just average trying to survive in a world that has changed so many times? I will be honest with you, as I always try to be, when I was a senior in my high school, I didn't have a very good guidance counselor. She told me at the beginning of the school year at our first meeting, to not bother with going to college, or such, but just to go get a menial labor job. I wasn't the worst student in school, a B- average GPA, but I had been told my entire life that "I CAN'T DO THIS, OR I CAN'T DO THAT!" From family, so-called friends and others. Each time I prove them wrong! Why? Because their negativity lights a fire under me, I love to prove people wrong. Just last week, after I posted the link to my first ever attempt at singing a country song to my younger brother, I got a text message back from him and an email from his wife, that I am tone deaf, and don't know how to sing. That's pretty funny, since I took 4 years in high school choir, plus 7 years in band at the same time. All my younger brother has ever done with music, is sing Karaoke at the local bar, while I was out performing with my band in the mid to later 1990's. No, I never got the fame of a lot of bands back then did, and still do, (I mainly sang backup), but I am known as a songwriter, composer, producer, and musician who can actually play 23 real instruments. I do have my fans still to this day. So, when I finally wrote, recorded, mastered, and published my first ever country music song on Saturday, I wasn't expecting a great amount of people who would like it. Normally, I am known for rap, rock, metal, experimental, and my own genre of Heavy Metal Blues which I first started out with. Especially since the comments that were given to me by my own supposed brother. I am happy to say, that a fair amount of people actually like my song https://runningwolf1989.bandcamp.com/track/your-man

Back to telling you, what choices I was thinking about doing after I graduated from high school. I had thought about what the guidance counselor had told me, and narrowed it down to 3 choices, of which I never told anyone, but one other person, until today. Those choices were as follows: 1.) to play in a band of my own, 2.) to become a minister, 3.) to become a porn star. Well, as you guessed it, choice 3 never happened lol, and it's probably a good thing as well. But I did and am still doing choices 1 and 2. Yes, I am still in the entertainment industry as all who casually glance at my profile will see, and yes, I'm not quite a minister, but I am a spiritual elder, shaman, medicine man. Plus a few other things that I have done in my life not listed on here for a reason. One being, yes I am a veteran, but I prefer not to think about what I went through before I started my band. I, like many other veterans, have PTSD. Music, songwriting, TV and Film scripts are a way for me to cope with my issues caused by what I and other veterans have and are going through. I am proud to be connected to so many awesome veterans and active duty military members on this site. To me you, and all my first responder connections are true heroes, not movie action actors. And I thank you so much for being connected with me.

We all have heard the saying "With age comes wisdom." Not sure who coined this quote, but there knew the truth. If anyone of us could have a way to talk to our younger selves, what would we tell them to prepare for how the world is today? 37 years ago, I had my first paying job, milking cows, baling hay, and other farm duties working for a local farmer. I was a 10 year old boy, who had many dreams in his head. I likes baseball, football, music of most kinds, since I started playing piano at age 5, and shortly thereafter started learning many other instruments. But due to the fact that my "supposed father" who has never been there for me, and has went so far as to cut me out of his will, but not my two brothers, but that's another story, I had to work at an early age to be able to help buy my own clothes, shoes, candy, help with food and other things. My mother was a school bus driver, for those who don't know, I applaud these people, who work for little pay, yet have to put up with so much B.S. it's not funny! How many of us, would look back upon our younger selves, and tell them, "Hey! Get your a&& in gear, make better grades, so that you won't be a poor, once homeless, no income other than disability person, like I am today?" You bet your last dollar I would! But then I go to think, look at all the experience that I have had in life. How much I would have missed out on, if that was possible. You see, hindsight is 20/20, the future is not for certain, and can always be changed. I'm glad that I have had to go through the life I have in someways, yet there are mistakes that I would love a "do over" to avoid. Still, we learn from our mistakes if we are willing, it's how we grow. Something most youth and young adults are still having to do, and yes, we as older adults still do. The key is to pass on our knowledge of the mistakes we have made to our youth, in hopes that they will not make the same mistakes that we have. "History that doesn't learn from past mistakes, are doomed to repeat them, until they do."

Now we go on to politics, everyone's favorite topic lol. Recently, I have once again approached buy the RNC, and DNC, but neither one has told me how they would help me to run, and win a state legislature position. I now live in New Mexico, and that is actually a "hot topic" on immigration, border protection, school violence, and more. Until these major political opponents (nice way of saying little kids, who argue about who's first in the lunch line), rather than actually solving people's issues. And no, California and New York, just because you have the majority of the population in the USA, doesn't mean that you get to set policies for the rest of the country, regardless of which political party has the majority in your states. Do I have opinions? Yes, but who doesn't? Do some people agree with my views? Yes, just like some people don't. But isn't that what makes the Constitution and the Bill of Rights so great? You take away one amendment, you weaken the rest, pretty soon, we are guaranteed no rights, and this county becomes a dictatorship or worse. And to be clear about things, NEITHER PARTY, has convinced me that their right, or have the best ideas yet.

Ending Joke of the Day: "You take a Republican and a Democrat, put them in a round room, and tell them to find a corner to pee in, what do you have? The state of affairs in the USA today.

If anyone is interested, I don't mind being a guest writer on blogs or other outlets, email me at: [email protected] to setup time and place.