Good Fortune

Diligence is the mother of good luck - Benjamin Franklin

I'm 10 years old. I've been outside working all day with my father - we've been cutting grass. But, now, it's bed time.

It's 11:30 at night, and I have to be up tomorrow morning at 6:00. I have practice. 

I grab a piece of college ruled paper and write on it: "Shane, you are going to wake up tired, but you will practice hard today." 

I tack it to the wall directly across from my bed, so I can see it when I wake up - tired. 

The next morning, I do exactly what I told myself to do. But, on my way out the door, I never take the piece of paper down...

I never would've known it then, but that piece of paper became a part of me. It guided me daily and kept me focused on the task at hand. 

When I was 14, I edited what the paper said. I added, "Prove 'them' wrong." Them, as in, the countless number of people who told me I would never become a professional baseball player. 

But, when I was 17, I crossed out that line and wrote, "Do it for the ones who believe in you." 

'It'? 

 At an early age, I fell in love with the struggle. I had no idea then, but I had already won. I had won because my father and mother had taught me the value of hard work. My father and mother had already instilled an intrinsic craving for the process rather than the result. 

12 years later, I've not changed at all. I've simply discovered 'It.'. I never became the baseball player the young boy wanted to be, and I'll never be able to prove 'them' wrong. It's been hard, but I've come to terms with it, as God has helped me find my true calling. 

Before, no matter how hard I worked, setbacks would always prevent me from taking the next step. For instance, I tore my labrum my senior year of high school and never got the college baseball scholarship I coveted my entire life. Hence, why I wrote, "Do it for the ones who believe in you." 

[Perhaps I saw the writing on the wall...]

Now, the harder I work, the luckier I get...

I was told last Friday, July 13, 2018, my shipment of coffee beans were held up by customs border patrol and the beans would undergo a thorough inspection - estimated time until I received the beans: 2 weeks to a month.

I was told on Monday, July 16, 2018, the beans were miraculously already cleared by customs. 

I received the 14,000 pounds of coffee on Tuesday, July 17, 2018. 

Needless to say, I didn't sleep the night before. 

But, I wouldn't say that is out of the ordinary.