Life & The Sunday Series

The Super Bowl of super emotions is fading. Let’s get back to real life and the reason I want to share. Got 3 minutes to give me? I won’t waste your time.

Hopped on the elliptical the other morning – nothing like a good workout to get the creative juices flowing – flipped on the TV for motivation and inspiration for my perspiration, and there on CMT Crossroads is Rascal Flatts & Journey performing together. Good mix. The coolest thing is happening in Nashville, it’s a brotherhood of music. But this is about way more than a country song.

Music is easy – hear a song, write a blog. It’s almost too easy, they write it for you. Most music does that, it’s why it’s the universal language. It’s the very fabric of our lives, hear a song that takes you back in time, or gets you moving forward in the right direction. Whatever, nearly every song creates an undeniable feeling inside, happy, sad, mellow, melancholy, angry, inspired. Very few songs have no meaning, or anything to say… it’s just like life. Some moments are simply wasted, but most of the time if you pause long enough to appreciate it, everything matters. Problem is, too many of us never slow down.

Rascal Flatts & Journey were performing “Life is a Highway” and they were bringin’ it!

“Life’s like a road that you travel on, it’s one day here, the next day gone. “

Been thinking about that a lot lately. It’s one of the reasons I’m blogging and I’m damn sure I’m writing a book(s). I’m gonna ride this thing all night long, and if you’re goin’ my way… we’ll drive this thing all night long. Why not? Ten posts ago I explained it all – I’m going to put it all out there, and not be afraid. Life is too short. Do what you want to do, to do what you love. I can stroke these keys and let it all pour out of my mind as fast as I can think it. Sometimes too fast.

Move down this highway of life too quickly and you lose out. Big time. I’ve learned to slow down, to coordinate, to orchestrate, but most importantly to appreciate. If not, you can’t create the music of your life. If you don’t, if you can’t, it all becomes white noise. Stop and take it in every once in a while. I’ve learned that if I want to thrive, and not just survive, there has to be more and it has to make a difference. I have already made a difference in countless lives in the arena of insurance and financial services, but what about really sharing what’s inside?

“Through all these cities and all these towns, it’s in my blood and it’s all around.”

I’m paying attention. I’m looking for good. I’m working on becoming more, every day. Every day. Too many times you only stop to take notice in chunks of time because it’s so dramatic you can’t turn away. When someone dies, when someone is murdered, when some whacked out radicals fly planes into buildings in the middle of Manhattan, when some asshole opens fire on a school. Then we stop, then we pause, then we pay attention. Too little. Too late. Because while you stopped to smell the sulfur, you forgot to stop and smell the roses. You forgot that every single day something meaningful is taking place in your life. Something small that is making a difference, if ONLY you stopped to notice. The more small things you pay attention to, the bigger the benefit. It’s the compound effect in action.

If you only take the fast lane and ride down the highway at 90 miles an hour – you are not gaining on a soul. You are simply leaving your own in the dust. You can’t outrun anything, it will catch up to you and probably when you least expect it.

“Knock me down and get back up again, your in my blood, I’m not a lonely man. There’s no load I can’t hold, road so rough this I know, I’ll be there when the light comes in, just tell ’em we’re survivors.”

Survivors. One of them lies by my side now every night. She was dealt her hand, one card up and one face down. The dealer was named Breast Cancer, but she decided to take a hit, and she beat the friggin’ dealer. Now she’s playing with House money. Think she’s taking a moment now and then to appreciate life? Still, the mistake we all make is waiting til someone tells you it’s time to play the game… be proactive. Make life your G.A.L. Gratitude. Appreciation. Love. They make a difference, a huge difference, if you just try them on for size.  And guess what, one size fits all.

“There was a distance between you and I. A misunderstanding once, but now we look it in the eye”

Don’t let a grudge, a hurtful word, or a miscommunication make the highway seem endless. Take an exit and take a breath. In and out. In and out.
Learn that the toughest situation, the toughest person to handle, just isn’t that tough if you take the time, to take the time, and think it through.

“If you’re going my way… I’m gonna drive it all night long.”

Life is a highway… and if you’re goin’ my way… I’m gonna ride it all night long.” Are you ready? I hope so, because we’re just getting started. And we’ll go there together. I’m happy to take the wheel. Or you can… as long as you take it slow and enjoy the ride.

Until next time, thanks for taking the time.

Mark

Sometimes a picture says a thousand words. In this case, not so much, since a few hundred thousand other people really need to be in the camera lens. I just wanted proof we were there. The one-word title is what really says it all.

Epic.

And it almost didn’t happen. But practice what you preach… never, ever, ever give up. We didn’t. We made it. Myself, my girls, my good friend and his daughters and one other neighborhood friend – all 7 of us – made it downtown yesterday against what seemed like unbelievable odds. Hell, if the Ravens could do it so could we. If you want it bad enough, find a way.

We left at 8:30am for an event scheduled to happen at Noon at the stadium. But the beltway was busting and when we finally made our way to I-95 leading into downtown, it was a parking lot. We were moving 10 feet every few minutes. Not to get in to too many details, but a “hail-mary”, yet strategic exit off the interstate, a quick real-time lesson with the navigation system,(our SUV is about a month old),for an alternate route, plenty of side streets, and we got within a half-mile of the stadium. We quickly parked, started walking, paraded inside… and made history.

Simply put, it was one of the greatest love-fests this city has ever seen. 200,000 people outside on the streets for the parade, another 100,000 people inside of M&T Bank Stadium. For about two hours yesterday, this city had a singular mindset: rejoice. You would think because this wasn’t the first Ravens Super Bowl victory that this celebration might not be as big. You, who thought this, myself included, were wrong. Maybe it’s because it’s even tougher to win it twice, maybe because the Ravens were such a young franchise the first time it happened, maybe because less than two months ago, after the regular-season Denver game, and pictures of Joe Flacco lying face down in the turf at the goal line, this season seemed lost. Maybe because a ton of adversity this season made the victory that much sweeter, and maybe because it was Ray’s Last Ride. Maybe, maybe, maybe. Who cares.

All I know is living it was euphoric. Thinking back on it gives me a lump in my throat. Writing about it makes it real and permanent in my mind, heart and soul for all time.

Articles on paper and online, tv shows, radio shows and I’m sure other blogs will document all the events. My purpose is to share the feeling, not so much the facts, because they are everywhere. If you want to hear the speeches, see the video and pictures, it’s easy, your closest TV, computer, or social media device. But what about how it felt inside… how it felt inside us, the collective mass that joined together in celebration.

It might have been bigger than the Super Bowl itself. I can only relate it to one other sporting event in my life, 2131, the night Cal Ripken broke Lou Gherig’s consecutive game streak. Only because you KNEW it was going to happen. Normally you go inside a stadium or ballpark, you are excited for the game, no matter how big it is, but you don’t know the outcome. So the shared feeling is one of incredible excitement, but also one of anxiety because the game must be played, and the final score, and your team’s chances of winning is only 50-50. On the night Cal broke Gherig’s streak, the chance of success was 100%, the electricity in the air was like nothing I had ever felt because it was as close to pre-determined as any sporting milestone could be. The Super Bowl celebration inside the stadium yesterday was that same feeling.

You were inside the walls of our Purple Palace for one purpose, celebration. Victory was already ours. When the players arrived, when the chanting started, when Ray did the dance…. I mean he did the dance!!! Who thought we would ever see it again on our home turf… it felt like your heart would explode. They could have turned off the lights in Baltimore and the shared power of that celebration would have lit up the city all on its own. The shared experience, the shared emotion, the shared euphoria made your heart, soul and your smile grow a mile wide. Sharing it with my girls (and let me say I am so sorry my wife Debbie had to work, we missed her terribly), and some close friends, just made it all the more special. I even made two new friends in the stands, one of them said she felt her heart pounding so hard she could barely take pictures, her hands were shaking so bad. I could easily relate. It was a day to share, share the feeling, share the love, share the moment with a few hundred thousand of your closest friends. Destiny had arrived. Maybe that’s what it feels like just before you head up to heaven. If so, I’ll take it.

I’ll also take one more thing. The unsolicited appreciation from my girls, as soon as the last speech had ended and we made our way down the ramp and headed for the exit: “Thank you Daddy, thanks for taking us”.

Now that’s a slice of heaven. Epic, indeed.

Until next time, thanks for taking the time.

Mark

How appropriate that Joe Flacco is going to Disney World, the place where dreams come true!

Hate to say I told you so. Actually…. no I don’t!!  If you read my last blog from Friday, (“Too Blessed to be Stressed”), I confidently predicted the Ravens victory in the Super Bowl, based on something that was way bigger than what happened on the field: daring to dream.

Dream realized.  And it was BIG. Not just the game, but the opportunity to watch it with my girls.  Just us. To be able to share that moment with Debbie, Sophie and Emily, just the four of us. The chance to embrace all three as the clock hit :00 and then watch as Sophie cried tears of joy over our Ravens becoming Super Bowl champs. I had the chance to go to New Orleans, albeit with a single ticket, but didn’t want to miss this moment with my family.   The players will tell you straight up, it doesn’t happen that often, it might not happen again, (we certainly hope that’s not true), and its so hard to get to that mountain top.  Sharing that “moment” with those closest to my heart meant everything.

But back to the game… and games for that matter.  Three different post-season games, all with the same predictions by most football experts.  The Ravens would lose.  From Denver, to New England to New Orleans.  Yes, they’re “experts” alright, reading the stats and looking at the plays, the coaches, the players on paper and on video and trying to see how past actions predict future events.  Problem is, unless you are immersed in the story of “your” team and “your” city, you can’t possibly understand.  I said it.  Dare to dream big, have the vision, develop a plan to make it happen, overcome adversity, obstacles and everyone else who is telling you there is no way you can pull it off. But if you find a way to stay focused on that singular goal, embrace the vision in your heart and grind it out… that’s right, true grit, that’s when something special happens, because the stars align, the universe opens up and miracles are possible.

There was never a doubt.  Even when the lights went out.  Even when momentum shifted so hard it seemed like an unstoppable train was going to run right over the Ravens and crush their hopes and ruin Ray’s last ride.  How fitting it all ended with a goal-line stand by the defense of a team that Ray has lead for more than a decade and a half. The players may have changed, but the message always the same, don’t give in and never, ever, ever give up.  How many times do professional athletes get to go out their way?  Ray Lewis and a higher power wouldn’t have it any other way.

And talk about purpose and sacrifice, and overcoming adversity.  O.J. Brigance, the team’s inspiration during so many recent seasons said it best, “in life there is purpose wrapped up in pain”. He would know, he’s hanging on with all he’s got. So many Ravens this year, found a way to fight through what seem to be unbelievable odds: death, injuries, controversy, the whispers and even the loud proclamations of being told you are just not good enough.  Especially the quarterback.  To coin a legendary baseball phrase from many years ago, “Say it ain’t so Joe”.   Joe said it loud and clear, for all the world to see. MVP of the Super Bowl.  As ESPN anchor Stuart Scott loves to say, Flacco  “was as cool as the other side of the pillow”.

And as I wrap it up, and it ain’t easy to wrap a story like this…  what a year to be a Baltimore sports fan.  From the miracle the Orioles launched in April and their return to the playoffs after a 15-year drought, to Michael Phelps incredible performance in London, becoming the most decorated Olympic Athlete of all time , to the Ravens making the dream playoff run a reality and getting Ray his Super Bowl ring.  If you still don’t think Charm City is special, its time to check your  ‘Hon card at the door.

See ya in Disney World, ‘hon.

Until next time, thanks for taking the time.

Mark

Where do I begin? With a dream. Isn’t that how the greatest ideas & events take shape anyway? Someone has to dream it, believe it and go out and achieve it.
Sunday will be that day for Ray Lewis and the Ravens. Go beyond the trash talk, the accusastions, the misinformation, the match up mismatches, the playbook, the betting line, the rhetoric, media day and all the mayhem. Purpose, passion and that dream will take center stage on Sunday.

You can feel it, you can sense it, you can almost taste it. The Ravens are on a mission and will not be denied. There are two very good teams taking the field on Sunday, but when you got it, when you want it, when you can see it, when you can feel it, and when you put a plan into action, I can’t tell you why, but it just happens.  I’m not betting on the game, but I’m betting on that dream, leaning on faith and if you want to go all the way, believing in a higher power (the same one Ray is calling on) to wrap up the miracle playoff run and bring the Lombardi trophy back to Baltimore.

Sometimes the universe is ready, the stars align, and your vision, your dream, becomes reality. The Ravens know it. Hell, they’ve known it for a month now and we all just joined the party. Legends are made in the post season and this season one of those legends is playing his last game on sports biggest stage. Its destiny. Give it all you’ve got, leave it all out there on the field, don’t dare to let yourself think about second chances, there are none. Put your head down, put blinders on and go out and play your heart out. Play after play after play. You can rest on Monday. You can party during the off-season. This is business and in business you get serious, you grind it out and you accept nothing but the best, nothing short of total success.

These Ravens are ready. They have a purpose, a mission to get Ray Lewis that last ring and prove everyone wrong. It’s become a mission and a purpose for the team because of what Ray has given to them: his heart, his soul, his leadership. When you give back, you get, many times over. When Ray announced his retirement he made the whole team partners in his mission, his last stand, and they have responded by giving everything, including creating some miracles along the way, to help him get the one thing he wants so badly, the ultimate in team success – The Super Bowl Ring.

A dream is a fragile thing, yet it can be the most powerful thing in the world, IF you believe.

Still not believing in the dream? Have no fear. I’m sticking with Ray. He’s “too blessed to be stressed”. Amen, brother. Amen.

Until next time, thanks for taking the time.  GO RAVENS!!

Mark