If your house was on fire, and you can only take 3 of your most prized possessions, what would you take?

I haven't really put much thought into the answer personally, but I know that if I were to run back in the house up in flames, I'd most certainly reach for my wallet. But not for my insurance cards, my ID, my money and debit card or anything like that. I'd rush back into the blaze for all the letters my dad has written me throughout the years. 

My friends like to make fun of me for having a "Costanza" wallet because of how fat it is, but the bulk of the contents of my wallet are things that cannot be replaced...they are simply invaluable. Over the span of my 21 years on this earth, I've made my fair share of mistakes, and I've definitely failed to rise to my parents expectations on some occasions. My father isn't much of a yeller, he isn't much of a complainer, but rather he likes to take some time out of his day to write...to me, my brother, my sister, and my mom. There's always a time when you can find my dad writing to us, no matter what the case. 

A few years back, I was struggling with my schoolwork and it was becoming detrimental to my success as a student, not only in high school, but for my future academic career post-high school. We got our third marking period report cards sent home, and low and behold, there sat my first ever F. Before I even got the chance to snatch the report card from the mail box so I could burn it, my parents had it in hand as I walked through the front door. Disappointment on their faces is an understatement. I heard the spiel from my mom about me being an underachiever and my "potential" to go nowhere in life. My dad didn't say a word. Later that night, when I went up to bed, resting on my pillow I saw the paper labeled "Jordan." I unfolded it and it read: 

"I hope for you that this semester was an aberration and will not happen again. You're not doing your homework and not studying as much as you should is only hurting you. You are not fooling us, you are only fooling yourself. You have tremendous 'potential' but it is only potential unless you do what is needed to succeed. "Don't be a could-have-been, be the best and exceed your potential." You have the means to do it, but do you have the desire? Only you are in control of your future. 
I know you can do it so just reach for the stars. Just remember this phrase and I hope it will motivate you: 'The harder you work, the harder it is to give up.'
Love, Dad" 

A little inspiration for those struggling (like me). 

How bad do you want it? Are you willing to sacrifice all in order to be successful? Wanna make a lot of money? Want to win games? Want to make the dean's list/get that promotion/land that big job? Want to reach your full potential?  "When you want to succeed as bad as you want to breathe, then you'll be successful."

It doesn't take a lot to be the best you can possibly be. Maybe that makes things seem a lot easier than they actually are, but the word is dedication. You just have to dedicate yourself to being the best you can be. It only takes a little bit of your time. The time you could be out with your friends partying or the time that you lay on the couch, watching TV, killing brain cells- take that time to read your school work, do your homework, go workout, go practice..do anything that will make yourself more fit for what you are trying to accomplish. 

Start tomorrow. Dedicate an hour extra a day to your achieving your goal. Next week go up to two hours. Week three, spend 3 hours. The more time you find yourself dedicating yourself, the better you'll find yourself becoming. By week 4, you're going to be improved in ways that you never thought possible. Always remember, "the harder you work, the harder it is to give up."

I think it's important, as human being, to always understand your role in the world. Whether you are on a sports team, a team grouped together for a project in class, or you are simply a member of society, it's extremely important to understand where you stand and what you need to do in order to generate a successful team, team project, and/or successful society. 

I'm going through something of a struggle to find where I need to be in order to generate the most team success for my lacrosse team at Lebanon Valley. Recently, I haven't been able to produce this season...me, once one of the team's top and most relied upon scorers, slipping to a second line player used to keep the pine warm and spell the starters for a few minutes. It's tough going from THE guy to just a guy, and it's the most in my entire life I've ever sat on the sidelines as a spectator and fan rather than a player. It's tough watching us lose tight games, games that I had chances but I didn't capitalize, had I capitalized such chances we would've sealed the game in our favor. Coach needs to find guys that will produce in such situations and has since bumped me down from starting middie, to said benchwarmer. 

I met with Coach to talk about my standing on the team as a player and a leader, and what I need to do in order to earn my spot back...I just need to produce. In the meantime, I'm going to be bumped around all over the field to see where I fit best and where I will be able to best help the team win...because that's all that really matters, the win. It breaks my heart to hear that I won't be playing offense until I can find the back of the net, because it's what I've done my entire life. I've been the go-to guy, and I've practiced to be that guy for years. With winning games on the line, it only makes sense to make the move to put me on the sidelines rather than on the field. What I struggle with now it finding my new role on the team that will help us win the close games we've been losing. I am (forcefully) sacrificing my role and I'm becoming a role player, rather than a star.