The Secret to Success

I stood there for a few seconds trying to convince myself that getting up from my spot behind the park to head toward my final destination for the night was worth it. It was more difficult than it sounded because even though it was officially spring, somehow the sun didn’t get the message. Michigan’s weather is weird like that; it might be in the upper 50’s during the day and drop to the lower 20’s by nightfall. The first few steps were hard. The last thing I wanted to do, especially on an empty stomach, was walk another mile. When I first stood up, I couldn’t feel my legs and I was fatigued, but a surge of energy kicked in. I took my hands out of my navy Eastbay lettermen jacket and sped up my pace. I passed the Synagogue on Lahser Rd. and was approaching Melvin’s street, Ivanhoe. I thought about stopping for quick second, but knew I didn’t need to get sidetracked. While walking I couldn’t help but think how in less than 24 hours my whole world had turned upside down. I went from living a middle-class life style, which consisted of having my own room, wearing the latest gear, going to upscale restaurants, traveling every now and again, having my own car, to being homeless. It felt like a bad dream but I knew it was much deeper than a dream this time. After walking more than an hour, I had made it. It had been a long day and I was ready to get some sleep. But something in my spirit was saying take a peek through the window of the house to make sure no one is up. As I had expected, the lights were off and it appeared that my parents were asleep. I figured the backyard of my parent’s house would be the safest place for me to lay my head until I could find some place better. My survival instincts kicked in and I went to my neighbor’s patio and borrowed their sofa cushions from their patio set. There were big bushes in our yard that sat a few inches from the house. I figured if I slept between the wall and the bushes no one would see me. Once my bed was situated, I put my arms through my shirt to keep warm and placed my coat over me. As I lay there trying to fall asleep, I noticed how gorgeous the sky was. It had a deep black coat that made the stars shine brightly. I began to whisper a short prayer. “God, I don’t know if you really exist, but if you do and you can hear me, I need some help. Please keep me safe tonight, forgive me of all the things I have done wrong, Amen.”

“When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me.”

1 Corinthians 13:11

SECTION

II

THE SOLUTION

CHAPTER

4

Change Starts With You

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself” - Leo Tolstoy

For four long years I dreamt about it, I talked about, I longed for it. I told myself, “Just hold on, it won’t be long—18 will be here soon. By then you will have graduated from high school, moved out of the house, and you will be on your way to college. Once you go to college you don’t ever have to go back home.” I guess I was lucky because my wish came true two years before my 18th birthday. There was only one problem; I left home with nowhere to go. What should have been a celebration of my independence turned out to be a nightmare. How could I have been so stupid? I literally slammed the door and walked out of a four-bedroom, two and a half bath, fully furnished, stocked refrigerator, 2,700 square foot home, and ran into the horrifying emptiness of sleepless nights, begging for food, and eating out of trashcans. Wisdom calls for one to compare what he is giving up with what he is gaining. In my case, I gained absolutely nothing.

Principle 1: Don’t make a habit out of choosing what feels good over what’s actually good for you.

When I stormed out of the house that day my father looked me in my face and said, “Eric, you better think about what you’re about to do because if you walk out of this house right now, if you walk out of that door, you’re saying to me that you’re a grown man. So let me make myself clear, if you leave, you will never come back to this house. Do I make myself clear?” I was so fed up with him and the way he treated me that I wasn’t even phased by his statement. I would be the first to admit that when things didn’t go my way I reacted off of anger and emotion. Because of that I landed myself in an awful situation.