THERE ARE ONLY TWO SIDES TO THE COIN... IF YOU HAVE A COIN

Above is the photo of a friend of mine: Ralph "Malachias" Gaskin. 

I met Malachias through facebook about two years ago when I saw his profile picture, a distressing photo of a soldier being medevaced from a combat zone. I couldn't find out anything more about Malachias other than that we had a mutual friend. So I friended him. 

Within a week I was on the phone with him. Malachias had been deployed twice to the warfront and had been suffering from PTSD ever since his first deployment. I knew about PTSD, because I worked with students all of the time who suffered from childhood trauma. 

The more I talked to Malachias, the heavier I sensed the losses he had suffered...

-losing time with his wife

-losing time with his children

-losing hearing due to combat noise

-losing his health

-losing his temper

Malachias described to me one particular time how he lost his temper with his son. He reached such a state of rage that he had his wife take him to the hospital. He described to me the total lack of options he felt he had. I mean, most people have this option...

But that's only an option if you have a coin in the first place. 

Some people aren't working with coins. They feel they have one option and one option only... continuing down the road until they self-destruct. 

The latest stats say that more than 22 military personnel commit suicide a day. That's more than...

-8,000 lives a year

-160 lives per state

-almost 1 life each hour

Malachias tells a unique story about living with PTSD in the book he recently published. What has worked for Malachias hasn't been simply creating another option: it's been creating SEVERAL options so that he never is pushed again to the brink again with only one. Find out what those options are by getting his book: http://goo.gl/9ViMD1

You don't have to suffer from PTSD to have no options. You can simply work yourself into a very small corner with the monotony and drudgery of a passive existence.

Do you want to know how you can increase your options?

Click here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYg3iB5VvmI

Click the link below to take TRAITMARKER's Assessing the War Within... A FREE ASSESSMENT FOR MILITARY COMBAT VETS (make sure you download the free ebook when you complete your assessment): 

www.traitMarker.com

Contact Sgt. Ralph Malachias Gaskin at:

https://www.facebook.com/AWarriorsGarden

If you are a vet & want a place to connect, like us at: 

https://www.facebook.com/TraitmarkerPTSD

For more daily inspirations, like us at: 

https://www.facebook.com/traitmarker

IT JUST MIGHT BE AN ALLERGIC REACTION

Notice that he isn't strapped down.

My son had been huffing and puffing the last few weeks of summer. We thought he had a summer cold. We thought it was the dairy he was eating. We thought it was the smoke from the summer bonfires we were having. So we...

-gave him cold medication
-restricted him from cheese and ice cream
-made him stay away from the woodfires...

NONE OF THAT WORKED. So we took him to an allergist. As I was said before, notice that he isn't strapped down.

What did we find? He's allergic to...

-wheat 
-tree nuts
-eggs
-horses
-dust mites...

But a strange thing happened (and it's related to his not being strapped down). My son was actually pleased with his diagnosis. His response?

Yay! I'm not allergic to dairy... I can have ice cream now!

For so long WE GUESSED WHAT WAS WRONG WITH HIM and ended up curbing very enjoyable experiences for him... 

-making him take cough syrup
-restricting yummy, summertime foods
-barring him from the bonfire

CREATING LITTLE FEARS IN HIM...

That little, wise boy didn't need to be strapped down, not because he wanted to know what was WRONG with him. He wanted to know what was RIGHT about him.

We all want to know what is RIGHT about us... OR SHOULD.

Do you want to know what is RIGHT about you?

Click on the link below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYg3iB5VvmI

Click the link below to take TRAITMARKER's Finding Your Hidden Strength: 

www.traitMarker.com

For more daily inspirations, like us at: 

www.facebook.com/traitmarker

KEEP PLOWING: THE SEVENTH LAW OF THE FARM

I used to think the world was a scary place. 

The day after I graduated was a sad day for me. I no longer had the immunity (excuse) of being a student. I slept for two or three days, thinking (dreaming, rather) about what my next move should be. 

I was looking at the Air Force for OTS (Officer Training School), but I couldn't get my diploma until I paid off my college debt (an agreement I made with my college).

So now the pressure was on. But I thought it would be easy. After all, I'm Robbie Grayson.

I can't remember how many business ventures I started my first year post-graduation:

-Shaklee (I got in under Don Stuart)

-Excel (I got in under Ron Baker)

-Tanger's Furniture (I depended on rides to and from work from my friend Joseph Contreras) 

-The Flip Factory (teaching gymnastics)

-Cutting hair (which was illegal in Florida without a license) 

In addition, I did some work for a Creation scientist & substitute taught at four different schools. All of this in a matter of a year. It looks like there was some confusion with which direction I should go. I eventually quit each of them.  

Like I said, I used to think the world was a scary place. Until I began to learn that its laws for prosperity were very different than society' laws (which are...)

-wealth without work

-pleasure without conscience

-knowledge without character

-business without ethics

-science without humanity

-religion without sacrifice

-politics without principle

A pretty long & conceptual list, isn't it? But Gandhi said this list would destroy us. 

I've reframed this list to reflect THE LAWS OF THE FARM (from a book my good friend Dwane Thomas of Visual Latin gave me). I'll use the example of plowing:

-where there is no plowing there is no harvesting

-want to plow, or you will plow because you must

-learn how to plow, or you won't know how to plow

-plow consistently, or you will harvest inconsistently

-if plowing becomes your life, you will have no other life

-be generous with portions of your harvest

I like the 7th law & wish that someone told me about it LONG AGO. It would have saved me a lot of time and trouble:

-when you've harvested so much that you feel you no longer need to plow, FOLLOW THE OTHER SIX LAWS OF THE FARM.

Does it really make sense that at any time in your life you will no longer need to plow? Ask a farmer!

Plowing will ALWAYS be work, but it CAN be enjoyable. 

Do you want to know what makes work enjoyable for you?

Click on the link below...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYg3iB5VvmI

Click the link below to take TRAITMARKER's Finding Your Hidden Strength: 

www.traitMarker.com

For more daily inspirations, like us at: 

www.facebook.com/traitmarker