Rebirth

It is funny how life can sometimes slap you in the face. What a wake up call that can be. Take me for instance. I had a life of my own...one that I worked hard at. And it all changed in the blink of an eye. Let me elaborate a bit...

I came from a small town in Kentucky. Madisonville to be exact. A very small corrupt little town of about 20,000 people. I guess all small towns are corrupt to a point. It seems very few people have power in small towns, and those with power can control everything. I was happy to finally get out of Madisonville. I had met and married my wife in 1991 and after two years we moved to Dayton, OH. She went to University of Dayton and I worked full time as manager of a local store. Money was tight and times were tough...but we made it work. After three years, she graduated from University of Dayton. It was now time to decide the next step in life. We both wanted to be a bit closer to home (Madisonville), but did NOT want to move home...or at least I didn't. So we decided to move to Louisville, KY and open our own business. I ran the business for three years (a hobby shop in the local mall) and she worked as an accountant for the City of Louisville. Things did not work out as planned. The business was a failure and it was time to look for new endeavors. I then decided to take a big chance and go back to college.

Let me tell you something...I HATE SCHOOL. With a passion. But I went back to school and earned a degree in Computer Science. I worked hard and was proud to graduate with a 4.0 GPA! That is probably one of my proudest achievements in my life. After working a few odd jobs and doing some contract work, I finally landed a very good computer job. The job paid very well...and along with my wife's salary, we did VERY good. We had everything you could want...nice cars, a nice house...great vacations...good pets...great friends. At 35 years old, I had everything you could ever want. Then the slap in the face.

In early December of 2003, I came home from work and was confronted by my wife. She told me she had fallen in love with someone else and was leaving. After a brief conversation, she left. Can you say devastated? 12 years of marriage gone. I had no clue...it was a complete blindside. Looking back, I can see where the problems were in the marriage and that is another blog entry for another time. But in the matter of seconds, my life came to an end. I felt that everything we had worked for was gone. What was going to happen to me? Let me be the first to tell you, God always has a plan. You may not realize it at the time, but He is always there and He will always comfort you and take care of you.

It was not long after that I met my current wife. We actually met through an online dating service. For those of you wondering if those things work...YES THEY DO. I did not want the bar scene and it is hard to meet people sometimes. The online dating service let me pick the type of person I wanted to meet. And I found her. Actually, she found me! But the real truth is, the Lord brought us together. We dated for a year and then was married. She is the greatest wife in the world and I cannot imagine living without her. A true rebirth had happened in my life. And the rebirth has consisted of a new look at life. I am closer to God than I have ever been. A lot of that has to do with my wife and her strong faith. I now know for a certain, that no matter what obstacles are put in my way, everything can be overcome. I am excited about the future. Yes, I know the economy is bad and people are losing jobs, etc. But I know that every day must not be taken for granted. Live each day to its fullest.

Until next time.