The Last Decade

it has been a while since my last post....seemed like a decade!

One day I woke up realizing that it has been a decade since a major turning point in my life.

Ten years ago I got evicted from a house I did not own but lived in for most of my life. It sparked an emotional roller coaster for the years to follow.  

You may think that such event was trivial. So I got kicked out of a house.  So what right?   Well, aside from the sentimentality, the emotional attachment to the house, the community, the stress and being homeless, several events stemmed from that "eviction". Pivotal moments came  that impacted my present being.

So much has since that summer day in 2006. The King of Pop and the Purple Prince are gone.  Babies were born. Some moved  on (like my father) to the Great beyond.  Friends settled down, some got out of marriages. New friends were made, some came and went like bus boys in a restaurant. Blessings, trials, opportunities, failures and realizations just popped in.  I was unhappy at the office but had to work for my keep.  

The last decade was mired with life changing episodes.  Some highlights are:

• I manned up by quitting hiding behind a bottle. Been dry as a dessert for seven (7) years to date.  Despite being "dry" I have had the best parties in my life in the last few years. I remember what happened too!
• I got injured,  went under the knife seven (7) times for minor procedures, including a "nose" job (septoplasty).
• After my stint, I did the "jump" from the corporate jungle to a semi entrepreneur environment. I bowed out of the rat race only to be in a more progressive race - personal investments.  Years ago I made that hard decision. I was afraid. I still am.  No regrets.
• Business and other opportunities just came in knocking from nowhere, at the most unlikely of times
• I lost some people like a second mother and walked away from those I considered close "friends", they revealed their true colors. I let them go a long time ago.  
• Some people broke the "sacred" trust I bestowed them. They are jettisoned as well from my being.
• I almost fell for people I could never have, again.  Maybe I will finally learn not to get into this situation again.
• At times by being somewhere I should not have been, I got crucified for by people I thought were tried and true.
• In 2012 I almost died of pneumonia. Had I not gone to the hospital, I would have been gone in about six hours.  That changed the way I look at death.  I could have gone easily with no fanfare whatsoever. 
• I learned many things about myself.  I wrote blogs, poetry, sang songs even "cut an album".

Those were just some of the highlights without getting the reader bored.

I used to dwell a lot on the past and get depressed. I sometimes still do. But instead of regret I now look more at the past blessings. Lessons if you will that at the particular time was like a curse that turned out to at least make me.stronger and dare I say wiser.

The upside to all the brouhaha - being homeless, evicted, making a "leap" from the office is that in my darkest hours, my true friends revealed themselves. Like a flicker of light in a dark room, it was easy to make them out even with just a bit of lume.. Some that I thought cared for me betrayed me with such fervor. Some lied, even cheated. Some that I loved never did love me back and were keeping score of their "kindness and generosity" they extended. It was all a painful lie. It hurt so much.  Still does at times but now far more manageable.  I have accepted a lot of things.

I still miss my old home. Been back a few times. 

I learned so much from my experiences. Instead of complaining about a lot of things I now more often give thanks for many things.  To name a few:. 

• After the being homeless, living couch to couch episode, I am grateful for the roof over.my head. I live in an old apartment. Very decent but in no way posh. Relatively safe and accessible. 
• I never went hungry. I always had food a shirt on my back.  
• Though the numbers dwindled the quality of my friends have far increased. The true ones are all that matters. I never married and had my own family.  Some old friends consider me part of their families, sincerely.
• I wrote lists - To Do, Bucket, Happiest Moments and Blessings.  I update them all the time

Ten years. At times it felt that my soul was practically burned at the stake. There were times when I was on top of the world.  The roller coaster ride continues.  Will I make it to another after this writing? Life goes on, the bus wheels keep running.  Who knows what tomorrow brings?

As I age. As I near the end than the beginning I am grateful for ALL the experiences I have had in my life.  I look forward to the next decade pushing the half century mark.

The future is bright and I gotta wear them shades.  Anything happens..... ...all the time.