Happy Sunday Everyone:
Sometimes I need perspective from outside my personal bubble to appreciate my own situation more than I do at a current moment in time. It’s not to say I want to find comfort or gratitude in what someone else is going through compared to me, but to look at a broader picture of events, stories, and efforts to prevent any “woe is me”. In one regard, going outside my bubble helps with the “things are pretty darn good”, but the opposite as well, which is “am I living up to what I’m truly capable of”.
Where am I going with this? My outside bubble comparison is my cousin, Ben Brown. I’ve talked about him once before a few years back. When I lived in S. California, Ben was as close to a little brother as I could have, then he grew up. I think he finished at 6’4, human specimen, played college lacrosse, and then felt a calling to join the Army, becoming an Army Ranger. He was in Iraq for 15 months, leading missions that involved removing roadside bombs and enduring daily detonations on his vehicle and patrol. In one incident, he lost his driver (also his best friend) after an IED exploded and his patrol came under a small arms fire ambush; in another he had to pull his squad leader out of a burning Bradley assault vehicle. His squad leader survived but lost his leg (this coming from articles I read vs. Ben telling me). Ben came home with a Purple Heart and a whole lot of PTSD.
My business is down, Ben has PTSD from his experiences in Iraq, perspective. The real perspective is what Ben has done with this, what does he do to invest himself and what he believes in to work through his own “personal bubble”. Last week he finished his 4th 100-mile Kodiak Race. He runs 100 miles of trails, high elevation, heat, night running, to raise money for his charity to help veterans, (9 Week Warrior). Can you imagine running 100 miles in a day, then adding trails and elevation? I think of what I’m willing to do and the level of discomfort I’m willing to accept to change a circumstance compared to Ben. I can’t compare anything I’ve done in my life to what Ben has done in his, or what he’s gone through. What I can do is learn from him. PTSD creates some really bad things in your head/body, Ben’s path has not been a perfect line of progress, but to me he serves as a living example of strength, grit, and determination.
These are Ben’s words on his website: “The time has come again to make sure life on BORROWED TIME has not become too comfortable. Since December 20, 2006, the initial concept that kept me here on earth and grounded me was “service above self”. This combined with the fact that you’re not supposed to be here and everything you are feeling, thoughts and emotions is part of the Bonus Round, what you get is the elimination of fear and a limitless drive to help others”.
I can’t write the above statement because I haven’t experienced what Ben has experienced but I can gain perspective outside of my own personal bubble and learn from him. I have my own “service above self”, I have my own “eliminate of fear”, I have my own “limitless drive to help others”, I think we all do.