Matt (in the center) living his dream
I remember the day that I found out that my son Matt would be going onto the crab fishing boat named The Wizard. The fears that kept wanting to creep into my mind were really small compared to the confidence that I felt, and still feel, in his sense of inner-direction. Matt would never accept anyone else’s idea about what he should be doing with his life. He has a great respect for people, listens carefully to their experience, judgment, and ideas, but in the end, he follows his heart.
For years, I couldn’t see the gifts that my own parents gave to me. What I considered to be their “defects” just seemed too big. My parents are both now well into their 80′s (my father will be 87 in May), and when I told them that Matt had realized a dream; to be filming on the Deadliest Catch, they both said, “How great! I am so proud of him!” Neither said anything about safety or caution or questioned whether or not he was up to it.
I’m not sure that my parents ever really believed in themselves, but they, especially in later years, have developed an unquestioning support and belief in me and what I am doing with my life. I feel the same way about my sons.
“Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit“. e.e. cummings
