I was a fuck up as a kid; acting out unconsciously everywhere; intuitively understood things weren’t working; had no idea what to do about it; and sports and recreation proved my salvation.
There I said it!
Despite having all the opportunities, I did not know how to use them and drifted in my demoralized and uncomprehending bubble. My spirit ached for it knew I was better: But what to do about it?
Sport was my lifeline. Through sport I met people I respected and watched closely so I could try to emulate what worked for them. Also, I learned that if I focused on my objectives and worked hard (which was a lesson onto itself), I too could start to have some success. And it is amazing what a taste of modest success did for my ravaged spirit. I learned that there is no quick fix but once belief in my worthiness and possibilities were identified and established, the grit to engage in the battle of life was encased deep in my soul.
I don’t have it all today, but man it, boils and all, is far better than what I once thought was possible.
True Confession: I have two conceits. One is that I believe my children were imbued with this ethic, in small part because they saw me working at it all day every day. The second is that I drive 20 year old beaters; because I can.
This trip across Canada is not about my ego. Rather, it is a celebration: rejoicing with my spirit and the indefatigable will to just keep going it gave me. By no means is this will unique to me or even remarkable in the general context, but on my journey through life it is the ingredient that for whatever reasons was hidden and I needed to find my spirit and with it the will.
I believe there are an untold number of spirits in underprivileged children which just need a timely boost to find their voice and lay the foundation for a “can do” determination and the heart to take on life’s vicissitudes. I suggest that without such an epiphany to trigger a change in their paradigm, they…. Well, I ask you to consider the meaning of demoralized: Subjugation of the emotions, spirit and soul which can lead to nothingness and the loss of will or even desire to live. If sport and recreation helped me, surely there are many children who will lose without a similar lifeline!
I believe the Strachan Hartley Legacy Foundation helps give many children that chance. For example, as Trevor Stokes who runs Streetfront an SHLF partner said, the main thing to learn for a troubled teenager in running a marathon is that “it is just 42,000 strides made one after the other.” The graduation rate for children attending this “alternative school” who progress from no sporting involvement to running a marathon is a staggering 98%. And marathon running is only one of their options in this program. Man, I feel their pain; followed by the joy and enlightenment of breaking through their personal myopia.
These potentially dysfunctional teens (in their words) need that angel to believe in and trust so that with a kernel of an inner voice having been activated there can now be an ember to gain shape and grow and give reason to recognize and pay attention to: “Say no to drugs” campaigns, seek help for and work through learning disabilities, be open to counseling for psychological, physical and sexual abuse, get through bullying, teen age dystopia, and start to keep their own counsel; just to name a few.
As long as I am being personal, it behooves me to make note of the following which will happen during the five month’s I am going to be engaged in this journey:
1/ Daughter Aimee-Noel and husband Mpho Mbiyozo, who live in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, are expecting their first child on or around June 20. That blessed child will be Mary Ann and my first grandchild and Mary Ann will be there.
2/ Son Wyatt, who lives and works in Toronto, will be married to Vanessa Burdett in North Vancouver in mid September. I will take a quick trip home to be part of this happy event. Wyatt has also just confirmed he will join me for the Labour Day weekend in September and canoe from Killarney, Ontario on Georgian Bay to a pull out on the French River: marvelous.
3/ Daughter Blythe, who lives and works In Calgary, will be the commentator for the CTV coverage of diving events at the 2012 Olympic Summer Games in London in August. Hot off the press: Blythe will join me for four days on the North Saskatchewan River from Edmonton to Elk Point. It warms my heart.
4/ Spouse, life partner and soul mate Mary Ann, apart from her time spent in South Africa, will keep the home fires burning in her inimitable style: Aimee-Noel is drawn by her mother’s heart and aura to visit in early September with her baby. I regret I will miss the 5th anniversary of our son Strachan’s death and our 37th wedding anniversary (both of which are on the same date and will occur while Mary Ann is in South Africa), and her birthday while I am away. I publicly want to thank her for all she has brought to our relationship, and in particular my view that she empowered me as a man and gave my life meaning when she chose me to be the father of her four babies, really. Do I need to say I love and respect her?
That’s it from me for a while: wish me good fortune. Happy trails to all until I can update through my SPOT system, my facebook page at Michael Hartley or Strachan Hartley Legacy Foundation or my twitter account at 2012CdnOdyssey. I will also post random blogs when access to a computer and internet can be had.
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