02/28/2024
So on this my birthday I contemplate this journey we all call life…
So this is what 56 looks like, over a half of a century old..
To be candid my life has been…well let’s just say not according to plan. But through all the ups and downs, the peaks and valleys; it’s been an incredible journey so far and I have been more fortunate than most and I have appreciated even the struggles because they made me who I am….a Warrior.
A friend once told me moments before I went into open heart surgery 14 years ago, “Ralph you just cannot die, you do so much for so many people you are a warrior among normal men and they just don’t make them like you anymore” and he handed me this quote by Heraclitus-
“Out of every one hundred men, ten shouldn't even be there, eighty are just targets, nine are the real fighters, and we are lucky to have them, for they make the battle. Ah, but the one, one is a warrior, and he will bring the others back.” Today I have that quote tattooed on my chest. A memory every morning when I look in the mirror of who I am to so many.
Being a warrior does not mean you are stronger or smarter than everyone else, you don’t have to be a soldier, a cop or a fire fighter to be one, being a warrior means that you take an oath in a World that is going to s**t to be a protector of those who cannot protect themselves, those close to giving up in defeat, those that have been hurt and broken..
All my life I have reached down to lift others up, I sacrificed my own wants and needs to help others. My dear mother taught me that. I use the gifts and tools that God has given me to do the very best that I can by anyone that I meet. Too many people are all about themselves, about their own gain. I can tell you first hand that the reason I have made it through so many trials and tribulations is because I have paid it forward not asking for anything in return.
Some do things for money, some for prestige and still others for recognition of a bronze statue when they are gone and others do it because they just want to be better humans…
Now, I am not a Narcissist, a prophet, a sage or a fortune teller. I am just a man who proved the norm wrong. I am a dad of three of the most amazing children and human beings I have ever met, I am man who has faced death too many times to remember. I say what I mean and mean what I say. I am a man of my word and you can believe my handshake. A rarity in this World I assure you. I am a gentleman in a World where that has almost disappeared.
How do I do what I do some ask? I tell them that every night I wipe the blood from my armor from the day of this battle we call life, I bang out the dings in my armor, I wipe it clean and shiny and set it up for the battle of life for the next day, I sharpen my sword and polish my shield and my head hits the pillow knowing I did everything I could that day to be a good person, a friend, a confidant, a counselor….a better human and the next day I hit the ground running…every damn day..
I live each moment as though it was my last, breaking the mold of the status quo and I choke every bit of happiness and experience I can out of each and every day because I know firsthand that tomorrow is not guaranteed. But most of all I try to inspire others to live a life worth living…to break free of the shackles of the mundane and live life full throttle,finally sliding into your grave with scrapes and scars and blood dripping from you and saying to the reaper in those last moments…”what a fu***ng ride!”
My name is Ralph Avallone, I am the Captain and whether you love me or hate me, I guarantee you will not forget me because I am a Warrior and I will bring you all back….
