The Loss of my Friend, Hillary Cooper

Losing a Friend

 

I found out yesterday that a dear classmate of mine, Hillary Cooper, died in her sleep Tuesday night. She wasn’t just a classmate. Hillary was my friend. We have been friends since preschool. Actually, she was my first “girlfriend” in kindergarten and first grade. Don’t get the wrong idea. This isn’t that type of story. We were simply friends that cared about each other. 

 

The news shocked me. I have been meaning to go see her, and to introduce her to my family for over three years. We talked regularly almost every month. I talked to her more than any of my classmates. She was so caring. She read every Facebook post that I made, and she didn’t read them for the reasons so many others do. She read them because she was my friend. 

 

Hillary would always compliment me on finding such an incredible wife. She would tell me how good it was to see me in love with someone so beautiful inside and out. Hillary was such a free spirit. I am sure that she saw that in Emily Drew. However, I believe that she was happy to see me in love with my entire family. Our dynamics is quite special, and one that I thought I would never be a part of. 

 

Hillary and I both come from a broken home. My dad actually was friends with her mother. Divorce is tough on kids. It was tough on me, and I am sure it was tough on Hillary. You grow up hanging out with friends that have moms and dads that seem to be inseparable, and then go home to your mother’s house. Oh wait, no it’s Dad’s night tonight. 

 

I don’t know about Hillary, but I grew up assuming that I would never have a traditional family. The thought never entered my mind really. I just assumed I would go through life having a good time and dating someone now and then. I didn’t want to settle for just anyone. I believe God had pity on me when Drew came into my life. I don’t really believe in true love. I believe in meeting someone that you mesh with, love starts to grow, and then commitments are made. I believe that love is something that you do versus feel. However, I feel hypocritical when I say all of that because I am head over heels in love with my wife. She makes my heart beat out of my chest some 13 years later. Our little family is truly my treasure on this earth. 

 

I think that Hillary was happy to see her friend in love. The last thing she ever said to me was, “I just could squeeze lil Magnolia to pieces. You’re a lucky man. Talk soon”. I should have gone to see her. That’s what shocked me the most when I heard the news. I have wanted to see her for years. Why in the hell did I not take my family over there? The finality of death is too hard to bear sometimes. I didn’t expect to lose my childhood buddy at 48-years-old. Like all of us I assumed that I would get around to it. Now that window has closed forever. Magnolia will never get a hug from her. Drew will never get to know her. They would have been great friends. Hillary was such a creative just like my talented wife. I feel like they would have taken a walk and talked until all hours of the night about the beauty in nature especially in our mountain home of Ashe. 

 

I could listen for hours to people like Hillary. People that see beauty where others see nothing at all. My wife takes that to a whole new level. Once we were somewhere in the Bahamas walking around. We had taken a cruise with our late friend Lisa Gnievek, and we at one of the stops. We were all laughing and sipping wine when all of a sudden, my wife stops in her tracks, screams, and is fixated on some pothole covering. Evidently there was a pattern on the pothole that simply mesmerized Emily Drew. I can only wish to see beauty like that in the world. I love my wife for that beauty. That beauty that lies in her very soul. I mean, what is it that allows people to create such beauty in their brains?

 

Ok this isn’t a love letter to my wife. It’s my way of saying that I appreciate God putting people in my life that explain this beauty in nature. Most people spend their lives talking about the ugliness of politics and government. They are obsessed with elements in life that will never be anything other than corrupt and ugly. They long for a state of utopia that will never be. Hillary could take you on the New River, and you would forget all about government and politics. Now that beauty is gone. That light is out, and I will miss my friend forever. 

 

Now I am at Carolina Beach with my sweet family. I have been reading The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway. He’s definitely one of my favorite authors. The plot takes place in Paris, and his imagery makes me feel like I am walking down the Seine with Jacob and Brett. Reading Hemingway makes me realize that a man has nothing of substance to say until life has beaten him up a bit, and it beats us all, some more than others. How do any of us recognize love without experiencing heart break? How do any of us experience a sense of urgency without death reminding all of us that we are surely mortal? How do we love God and appreciate His love and mercy without knowing our own depravity?

 

Life has a way of crushing us: death, war, failure, bankruptcy, divorce, heartbreak, loss of a job, closing of a business, end of a career, etc. It’s in those moments that we feel down. We feel surrounded by darkness so thick that it appears the blackness will never subside. For some this is a time of extreme sadness, and for others it becomes something quite worse, depression. Some are able to make it out of these obscure moments with the help of the universal healer, time. Others seem to never break those chains.

 

I propose that these difficult moments in time are actually something all together different. When life crushes you, it becomes what I call the great teacher of light. From my childhood, I can clearly see the majestic beauty that lies before me in my family. I hold my wife at night in a thankfulness that most will never know without experiencing the sadness of a broken home. I hold a woman that isn’t jealous instead supportive; doesn’t nag instead thought provoking with each conversation; and isn’t callous instead loving and nurturing. Only God knows the depth of my love. Not only did He know it before creation, but He heard it in my pleads for mercy during her cancer. 

 

Hillary’s death is heartbreaking. It’s one of those dark moments, but I am old enough to know that there is light in all of this. I remember her illuminous glow that would absolutely blind any room. I remember her love of nature especially for that of our native home. I remember her love for her children that you could sense with such array when reading her comments about each of their successes. I believe that she took from some of her childhood struggles, and in turn provided even better for her children. She can accept those newly earned wings with the confidence that she has earned the compliment, ‘job well-done Hillary’. You have prepared your babies with the skills necessary to take on the great professor, life. Most have only regrets, but you my friend parented with success in my eyes. 

 

Hillary, I am going to miss you until we meet again sweet girl. You have left me with a regret that won’t pass anytime soon. The regret of not acting and introducing you to my family , so they too could benefit from your brightness. This is a regret that will teach me a lesson, and I hope that whoever is reading this learns the lesson without having to lose someone. Death reminds us that a sense of urgency is necessary on this earth because tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. It’s a cliché statement, but so true. If there is someone you want to hug, hug them. If there is something you need to do, do it now. I know I held my dear wife last night with a tightness unlike any in the past months. 

 

Hillary, none of us know exactly what Heaven looks like, but I hope you are in a canoe filled with animals. I hope your mother and father are in a canoe on either side. I hope you are all singing in a way that you couldn’t on this earth. I pray the sun is shining on your sweet face and the cool mountain breeze is blowing in a way that only children of the Appalachians could explain. All I can say is, “job well-done my friend”. You will forever in my heart remain that sweet little girl that I grew up with in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

George Floyd

George Floyd

I have been waiting to express my thoughts on the George Floyd murder to make sure that I took the time to really think about my answer. I have friends and athletes of all races, but the fact is that I am not black. I am a white guy from the mountains of North Carolina. Therefore I wanted to understand it from an African American’s point of view, so I reached out to my Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity Brother, Mark Vertreese for some clarity.

I wrote to him on Facebook:

“I’m 100% with you. My question is what do we do? What’s the change that we’re after? I would say step 1 is holding these people accountable. I’d like to step on that cops throat for him to get a taste.

Do you agree that it really comes down to our government enforcing laws? I don’t believe that we can expect a world filled with zero racists. There will always be jerks amongst us. I just want to see them held accountable. There are plenty of great police officers. However we need to make examples out of the bad ones.

Am I right or way off base? Mark Vertreese I am asking you because I want to respond but I can’t pretend that I understand what it’s like. Now I want to know because I want to be a part of the solution. This is me, your Brother, reaching out to get understanding. It’s time for change”

Mark’s response:

I think part of my response to you, Travis, also lends itself to something my Uncle James wrote. I do think behavior can be legislated. If you consider legislation as the rules a society lives by, imagine the 'law of the street light' or 'the talk' black parents have been giving their children as a matter of routine for decade after decade. Black parent (and by literal extension all parents) have legislated the behavior of their children, with consequences front and center for disobeying them. In my opinion, Uncle James, what you cannot legislate is morality.

Travis, I think legislation is where we need to begin to level the playing field, and the way we get there is by voting. Anyone who was kept from voting by law, and then earned that right by law (women and blacks, specifically), has a responsibility to exercise that right in support of the progress and process required to perpetuate the life every American is entitled to enjoy by proclamation of the Constitution of the United States. I am not a fan of rioting, but I get it. I get the passion and the anger. But I'm not one to lean toward destruction. In the same breath, I do not wait for the privileged to recognize the inequity of the life they enjoy in support of giving that up and paying privilege forward. Behavior is legislated by saying you cannot murder someone without consequence. Morality says you shouldn't murder someone because you should understand it is wrong to take someone else's life. Legislating the continued inequity and accepted disparity keeping minorities in their place is terrible. Supporting those politicians and their policies, which enable that inequity and disparity is the morality you cannot easily change. People need to vote for change, and the need a reason to expect that voting is going to effectively change their situation. Voter suppression (hello, Brian Kemp in Georgia), financial inequity (hello, companies more concerned with shareholders than employees), misappropriating the value of a vote (hello, Supreme Court and Citizens United), the dereliction of duty running rampant through the criminal justice system (hello, private prisons and the school-to-prison pipeline), and so much more are at the mercy of the citizenry at the voting booth.”

So now here’s what I believe:

First as a Christian man first, I believe the bible to be true when it says:

Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is ^[a]neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

And

Romans 10:12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him;

And for the police, judges, lawyers, and other officials in the world

John 7:24 Do not judge based on appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.

I don’t believe that we can rid the world of racist jerks, but we can change our response to such people. A response of zero tolerance is justified at this point. I am also talking about the culture in some (notice I said some) police precincts, where cops won’t tell on other cops. You guys are the good guys. There shouldn’t be anything to tell. If there is something to tell and you refuse to tell, you are no longer the good guys.

I want to also say that I believe that most police are great people just living a life of servitude, but it’s time to rid all departments of people like Derek Chauvin (the man that killed George Floyd with multiple complaints, 3 shooting, and 1 fatal shooting). The guys that didn’t do anything to stop Chauvin deserve to be charged with murder as well. I don’t care if they were worried about their job or not. Do the right thing!

To summarize:

·      If you are a Christian, there is zero room for racism. If you are a moral human, the same is true.

·      It’s time for Legislation to make some real changes. Permanent changes! There should be nowhere to hide for corrupt cops. There has to be a higher standard for those that swear a life of protecting and serving.

·      We have to change the internal culture of police precincts. Just like the actions of USA Gymnastics has brought about change in all governing bodies in Olympic sports, there has to be change involving racism and protecting corrupt cops.

So what about the protests? I would be mad too. Let your voices be heard for sure, and let’s spark change. What about the looting and violence? Well, on one hand I can understand. If it were my son that someone smothered the life out of in the street for all to see, I am sure that my actions would not be Christ like. I would act out in a mad rage, but that wouldn’t be the right thing to do.

1. Burning down stores owned by other minorities makes no sense, and doesn’t do anything for the cause. It actually shifts focus off of the acts of George’s killers and on to the riots. It gives people something else to talk about other than what needs to happen.

2. The majority of cops are great people. My neighbor is a cop, and he’s the absolute best. The majority of all races are great people in regards to morals. However we live in a fallen world, so there are going to be some bad people. A few bad acts from any race or group of people do not make the entire race or group bad in nature.

In summary, I am not going to judge anyone on appearance whether they are black, brown, white, or wear a badge. I am going to judge each person based on his or her actions. In the meantime I am all for legislation that will invoke change in this country. Change needs to come swiftly and most assuredly.

I stand with my Black friends (I say Black because this isn’t just an American Tale. This is all over man.) all over the world. So Mark, Eze, Zac, Prince, Malcolm, Lavan, Anthony, and all the rest of you, I hear you. I am with you. I guess the real question is:

Where do we begin?

Jamaica Stole my Heart

Jamaica Stole my Heart

My wife Emily Drew and I got home from Kingston, Jamaica last Wednesday May 22^nd. My friend Phil Tremblay, CEO of Stronger Experts, arranged this entire trip with the help of one of our experts, Coach Jae Edwards. I went there to help the Jamaican sprinters and to learn from their program that has ruled the world of sprinting for the last decade and a half. However something else ended up happening while we were down there. I fell in love with the country and the people of Jamaica. I have been to a lot of places around the world at this point of my life, but I have never been homesick for a country that I have visited until now. I can see the faces of those young sprinters every time that I close my eyes, and I just want to go back.

Phil working with the athletes

I’ve heard my father-in-law, Pastor Rick Taylor, talk about God calling people to various ministries. He talks about this calling as if it’s something that is irresistible to the point that the person can’t do anything else. I have always felt called to coaching, but nothing else on this planet has ever grabbed me more than those people in Jamaica. I write this with a massive lump in my throat as I think back to those smiles and those looks of determination. Those folks aren’t ‘trying sprinting’ like we might here in the United States. They are going all in with hopes of changing the circumstances of not only their lives but also the lives of their entire family.

Yohan Blake, the world’s current fastest man in the 100m sprint, joined my friends and me at Barbell Shrugged for a podcast that I won’t soon forget. I found myself staring at him while he talked with my mouth wide open in disbelief.  Every once in a while, I would ask a question, and then I would immediately return to my position of listening. His story might have very well changed my entire life because I will never be the same. There is no way to hear his story, and walk away unaffected unless you have no soul.

Podcast with Barbell Shrugged and Yohan

Yohan grew up in a one room, not one bedroom, one room home with seven other siblings and his mother and father. Food was scarce, and money was even scarcer. He started his athletic career in the sport of Cricket, and then he was convinced to try sprinting. Right away he was faster than most other people, and then boom all of a sudden he was faced with a glimmer of hope to not only change his life forever but also the lives of his entire family.

Yohan Blake warming up

He explained to us how he prayed that God would grant him speed, so that he might change the circumstances for his family. Obviously God was listening because he started crushing it right away. Now he is the fastest man on the planet, and the second fastest of all-time. You probably think that the government of Jamaica pours all of their resources into their sprinters. That’s what I thought, but I was wrong.

The government doesn’t give them a dime. They practice on local high school tracks, and they strength train in local gyms. They have subpar facilities, but they have state of the art hearts and mindsets. That’s where they defeat everyone in the world. Heck Yohan and Usain Bolt put more funds into the young up and coming athletes than the government.

I actually hung out with one of the countries best coaches, Jae Edwards, and he does more than just about anyone in the country for those athletes. He houses them in a pretty cool dormitory that he had built in his gym. He also coaches them for free and feeds them. However there is so much more that the athletes of Jamaica have to offer the world.

I can honestly say that God has convicted me with so much that I want to do for those athletes and that beautiful country. Those athletes rule the world of sprinting without any of the advantages that the athletes in America enjoy. Imagine what would happen if Jamaica received money for awesome facilities, equipment, coaching, stipends for living, and healthy food. They would do things in sprinting that have never been though of.

Right now, they simply out work the rest of the world. It’s not what they have that makes them so unbeatable. It’s what they don’t have, and by that I am talking about them not having other options or distractions. In America, if we fail at something, we always have back up plans and other options. If Yohan had failed at the sport of sprinting, his entire family would have suffered in poverty of the rest of their lives. Yohan didn’t have a choice, so he put his head down, performed the work, and became a champion.

What about the young ones that don’t quite have the talent? I worked with six athletes while I was in Jamaica. All six are amazing, but probably only one, maybe none, will make it on the International scene. All of them would be good enough for a scholarship in America to any D1 Track Program, but they don’t have those opportunities in Jamaica. I want to provide them with opportunities. So here is what I want to do:

·      Develop an exchange program where they can take their talents to American or possibly British University Track Programs in exchange for scholarships.

·      Develop an identification process for other sports like American football or even weightlifting. That way they can maximize their potential for the sport that best fits their genetic traits. Hopefully I can recruit my friend, Andy Galpin, to develop the identification process.

·      Provide funds to their coach, Jae Edwards to improve their living circumstances both in their dormitories and nutrition.

That’s it for right now. Luckily, I already have a 501c3 nonprofit for at risk youth, so I can start raising funds for these youngsters right away. I plan of getting with Phil, CEO of Stronger Experts, Coach Jae Edwards, and my friends from Barbell Shrugged to come up with fundraising ideas to get these youngsters headed in the right direction and therefore improving Jamaica one athlete at a time.

If you have never been to Jamaica, I highly recommend it. I am not talking about going to one of those all-inclusive resorts, hanging out, and then flying home. I am talking about experiencing this glorious country and the beautiful people of Jamaica. There is something about those people and that majestic country that will leave an imprint on your very soul for the rest of your life. I am sitting here right now, and I feel like I am being pulled to the Caribbean.

If you want to be an early partner in this new endeavor, you can donate to these young men at:

è https://www.mashelite.com/youth/

I will send 100% of the proceeds to Coach Jae Edwards. This is just the beginning, as I intend on discussing fundraising ideas with my team at Stronger Experts and Barbell Shrugged this week. God has put this on my heart as a ministry. As of this moment I can say without a doubt that I will work with this astonishing country for the rest of my life. I hope that at least a few of you will partner with me in changing the lives of these beautiful people.

I want to at least mention the beauty of this treasure of a country. I have been to more countries throughout the world than 99% of most adults, but I have never seen beauty anywhere like there is in Jamaica. I first visited Jamaica in 1994 during break from Appalachian State University. When I stepped off of the plane, I literally thought that the scenery was props for a movie. It is so beautiful in Jamaica that it doesn't even look real.

Somewhere that Jae took us in Jamaica

No matter how beautiful the country is, the people are even more beautiful. I just want to make the lives of those boys a bit better. I won't stop in this pursuit. I set out to be the best powerlifter in the world, and I did just that. I set out to be the best weightlifting coach in the world, and I am at least on the way with 22 Team USA athletes since 2014. When I set my mind to something, it's going to happen. I hope that you guys will join me in making this a reality for these incredible young people. If you are a coach, check out: https://www.strongerexperts.com/projectstrongerjamaica and come with us the next time that we venture down to the incredible country. I think it will be sooner than later for me. 

Coach Travis Mash 

P.S. If you are a coach, I recommend that you check out the world's best coaching platform, Stronger Experts at www.mashelite.com/strongerexperts and learn from the absolute best experts in strength and speed.

Everyone Needs a Voice

Everyone Needs a Voice

A few years ago, I attended my wife’s art professor, David Faber’s art opening. He’s an amazing artist, but it wasn’t his art that inspired me that night. It was his words, and now I am passing those words on to you. He gave a short talk to all the attendees, and it was there that he told us that every person should either create art or write. He said it was a way of communicating with the future generations of one’s family.

It struck me right away. My father passed away in 2005, and I still long to hear his voice and to know his thoughts. I would give anything to talk to that man just one more time. Can you imagine if he had written blogs or books that I could pick up and read at my leisure? I would love to know his thoughts about life, love, religion, and me. Can you imagine? It would be like talking to loved ones past the grave forever.

When I want to talk to God, I just pick up the bible and read. God wrote everything down for us that he wanted us to know. That book is a lifetime of reading. I would love to have the same from my dad and my grandmother. It’s too late for them, but it’s not too late for all of you and me.

The whole reason that I started this personal blog was for my children and my wife. I want them to have all of my thoughts. Lately I think that I have swayed off the path due to worrying about what people might think. I have a business to run, so I have to consider what I say. However I am done with that on this blog. You guys can always go to mashelite.com and read my articles and listen to my podcast, but this blog is for the people that really want to know my thoughts while on this earth.

Since I was young, I have had a desire to win. At first, it was a simple desire like a lot of kids, but that simple desire grew. It grew in stages, and now it’s something not quite so normal. In seventh grade, my mother met the man that was about to become her third husband. This guy taught me to win. Sound healthy? Probably not, but it took. I learned to win, but I didn’t learn how to lose. No matter who you are, eventually you will lose at something. Losing should be something that you learn from. It shouldn’t be something that defines you until the next time you have a chance to win.

I remember the first time that the concept of winning really took with me. I was playing basketball in 9^th grade. I was pretty good, but my friend started in my position. I was happy for my friend, and I didn’t really mind. One day my stepdad came to practice. On the way home he told me something profound. He said that I could still be a friend with someone even if I took his position. He said that if someone had to earn a starting position, why not me? It was a question that no one had ever posed to me.

It seems like a simple question, but it changed me from the inside. From that point on, I decided to be the person that earned the starting position. This feeling was cultivated inside me, and it grew as time went on. By the time that I became a powerlifter, that feeling had become more like an obsession. No longer did I just want to win, but I wanted to be the best in the entire world. Most would think that this desire was a good desire. If one could remain balanced, I would agree. However that desire had taken over my entire life to the point that nothing else mattered. Guys that was wrong!

Last night I watched “A Star is Born” with Lady Gaga. It’s been out for a long time, but I still don’t want to be a spoiler alert. In the movie someone kills himself or herself because they are struggling with their career, and they feel like they might bring their loved ones down with them. I just thought to myself, “How sad!”

Life is like a roller coaster for most of us with a series of peaks and valleys. Athletically I peaked in my early thirties winning the world championships and breaking multiple world records. It was nothing like being a star musician, but I definitely could relate to the Jackson Maine character. My entire body hurt during the pinnacle of my powerlifting career. It was hard to focus on anything outside of my sport like family or work. I became real familiar with my doctor as she tried to help me through this moment with the promise that it would soon be over.

At that stage in my life, I believed that nothing could exist outside of my sport. You were either helping me win, or you were a distraction. I pushed my entire family away including my daughter. I pushed friends away. Just like the characters in the movie, nothing existed outside of becoming the best.

This is all a lie though. This is coming from a coach that works with some of the best athletes in the world. There is so much more to life than dominating your chosen field or sport. Each night I come home to a beautiful family with a wife and two sons. I am working on my relationship with my daughter Bailey, and I have a little girl that is due to grace us with her presence any moment now. No championship or world record even compares to that feeling I get when I come home at night. Sometimes at night, I work late and my boys sleep with their momma. I come to bed when they are all asleep. Sometimes I pull up a chair and just look at the bed filled with my loved ones for hours. I thank God for gifting me with these amazing people. My heart swells with love during these moments.

I used to talk about leaving a mark on this world with my athletic accomplishments, but now I know that is small potatoes. I know that I will be defined by the way I love my wife. I will leave a mark by raising young men that know how to be men, and raising young women like royalty teaching them what to look for in a husband someday. Coaching my athletes to succeed in a balanced way is much more important than the things I did when I was an athlete. My relationship with Christ is the anchor in all of this.

Out there right now is a struggling athlete, actor, or musician that thinks they are defined by how many likes they get on Instagram or by how many people watch them perform. Look you are not a circus monkey. If you want to really leave your mark on the world, then love your significant other so much that everyone around you will notice. When people see others truly in love, they will begin to long for amazing love instead of settling for just whatever. You can also coach in a way that teaches your athletes lessons about life. Coaches touch so many young men and women in ways that will echo throughout the lives of those athletes. Just yesterday I received this message from a former athlete:

“Hey Travis - I hope you and your beautiful family are doing well! I’m in the throes of wedding planning and it’s come time for ----- and I to figure out who we’d like to marry us. I want that person to be someone who has impacted my faith. To this day, my memories at your gym remain so dear to my heart. The environment you created afforded me the opportunity to become better physically, mentally and most importantly, spiritually - your gym made me light on my feet for basketball and even lighter on my feet for running with endurance the race set before me. Your gym gave me a village of people who lifted me up, like iron sharpening iron. One of those people who sharpened me was Poppy. He was the closest thing I ever had to a youth pastor. The talks he and I shared challenged me to dive to deeper depths in my walk with Jesus. He truly walked with me, shaping my walk with Christ in a time when I needed it most. For that reason, I couldn’t think of anybody I’d want to marry Chase and I more than Poppy. If you don’t mind, I’d love to get his number so I could call him and reach out to see if that’s something he’d be willing to do!”

I miss being an athlete, but nothing compares to the life that God has given me now. Someday when my little ones grow up, I hope they read this and understand the thoughts going on their dad’s head. I hope they know the immense love I have for them that I carry with me throughout this crazy life. I hope my beautiful bride knows that I still look at her beautiful face when I pray at night thanking our Creator for this amazing woman before me. I hope that all of you will experience the same love, and more importantly that you recognize the blessing being granted by such love. Sadly, a lot of us don’t recognize until it’s too late. Please don’t be that person.

I want all of you to go out and chase your wildest dreams. However along the way, I want all of you to love the people around you like there is no tomorrow because someday there won’t be. Death is always a sad part of life, but the beauty of death is the light that it shines on your loved ones still on earth. Win the race, but don’t forget to inspire the world around you during each step of the way!

I encourage all of you to find your voice. Whether you want to write or create art, don’t waste one more day. Your children and grandchildren will thank you one day. Also it’s never too soon. I wish I had written more during my younger years because I can’t even remember that person anymore. I’d like to look back and try to understand some of my thought processes. Don’t waste another second! Find your voice today!

One thing that I am trying to do is work on my Youth At Risk Program. If this blog was inspiring or encouraging to you and you feel the desire to give back, check out our Youth At Risk Page to learn more about what we are trying to do:

https://www.mashelite.com/youth/

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