Page 19 - DEC2021 Digial Issue: Barbecue News Magazine

comes with being content. Everything seems to always work out, maybe not the way I want it, but it works out, nonetheless. I need peace when I’m not finishing contests where I think I should. I need to be content when a sponsor informs me, they can no longer be on the journey. Peace is what allows me to look to the future with anticipation rather than looking at the past with de- spair allowing it to define my future. History is to be learned from in order to have a better future. When this is fully realized, there is peace. There will be contests I will win. There will be sponsors who will step in to fill the voids. Bills will be paid, happiness will be had. Peace is my Christmas wish and one I hold in my hand.
Patience
In the movie, Chisum, Pat Garrett, when asked about his patience, replies, “I got the patience of an oyster.” This is one of those char- acteristics we all struggle with from time to time. Sure, I can sit down and work at something no matter how tedious. Then there are those times when I don’t have the patience for the remote control to change the channel. But I want to be more patient. In our fast food, quick internet lives, patience is almost lost. I want what I want to work, and I want it to work now, no matter how many steps there are to do so.
Number three on my Christmas wish list would be to simply have patience. Patience with my career because it is moving forward at a snail’s pace (according to me). Rome wasn’t built in a day, as the old saying goes, and neither is a career. Overnight sensations are rarely that, which means patience is a must. There are other areas in which patience is the virtue necessary, but it is never immedi- ate. Remember the prayer, “Dear Lord, may you grant me patience
and please grant it now!” Getting patience may be a work in progress, but it is on my Christmas wish list.
Growth
Lastly, is a simple one for me to ask for Growth. Not in weight, but personally and in business. A quote that keeps appearing to me everywhere is one by Zig Ziglar. “If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you.” Learning something new everyday is one of my goals and has been for years. Sure, it may not be groundbreaking knowledge all the time, but it is something new and I am better for it. I’m going to let you in on something personal about me. I never was a great student. Average grades, enough to get me through, not be- cause I was dumb, but I was just lazy. As I’ve gotten older, those transcripts have bothered me to the point that I want to learn more and more. What all did I miss in those classes I passed notes in?
Growth in business. I believe this will follow suit as I grow per- sonally. I’m a writer and have been for over 30 years. I’ve written articles which have never been submitted and ones submitted but never published, but I keep going. There is a market out there for a guy who writes and has a love for outdoor cooking. There’s nothing like watching the sun rise over a lake with the grill fired up with some breakfast about to go on. I digress. My business will continue to grow as I continue to grow.
There it is, my Christmas Wish List. The rest of it will include some cast iron skillets and cooking gadgets. However, I hope you have your wish list put together. Afterall, “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.”
DECEMBER 2021
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