“Some say this world of trouble,
Is the only one we need,
But I’m waiting for that morning,
When the new world is revealed.

Oh, when the saints go marching in
Oh, when the saints go marching in
Lord, how I want to be in that number
When the saints go marching in”

This weekend the New Orleans Saints are going to their first Superbowl.

Whether you are a fan of this team or not (and I am not), the fact that this great city not only has never been to the Superbowl, it is what they have gone through to get there that, to me, makes their trip to the NFL’s championship game so amazing. 

Not to mention, inspiring anyone to look any obstacle in the face and not give up.

Four and a half years ago, Hurricane Katrina swept through this city famed for Mardi Gras, southern cousine and hospitality (not necessarily football being the first thing that tops the mind for many when they hear about this city on the Mississippi).

N’awlins (as it is lovingly called) experienced a form of devastation from Mother Nature that made itself known and left its mark - one that killed, pillaged and plundered the lives of thousands - leaving the city, and our nation, uncertain about whether or not this great city/area would ever recover and be the same.

(Click on this link for a refresher of what happened that fated weekend of August 28th, 2005)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effects_of_Hurricane_Katrina_in_New_Orleans

While over one million people had fled the city, the Superdome (home of the New Orleans Saints) became home to over 20,000 homeless people just in the first 24 hours, as it was a safe place that had floors/levels above the flood zone that was destroying every other part of the city.

I can’t even fathom the loss that those that lived there at that time experienced.  Lost homes flooded with water, lost investments, lost dreams, lost hope, having to flee everything they owned, lost family members, lost jobs.  This event came at a time just before our own country started to experience its own devastation.  How could this city rebuild?  Would the Superdome ever have another NFL game in it?

It makes one think, doesn’t it?  What would you do had you been there?  Would you give up?  Throw in the towel?  Reach out for support?  Rise to greet each day with hope? 

I know a little what its like to have lost money, possession, business, homes, etc., through this economy.  I remember the feeling of shame while being homeless and unable to pay for gas for my car at a very low stretch.  I know what it feels like to want to throw in the towel and just give up.  You can hear more about my story by clicking here - http://bit.ly/cPrZU0.

How about you?  How are you doing during your own “hurricane” in life right now? 

What I see from the city of New Orleans, what I have seen for myself and many other Americans during these times, is faith and hope.  Hope for tomorrow and faith that something higher than ourselves will help us to see another day and time of prosperity.  We may not know how long it will take to get there, but we know (and will be reminded this weekend - win or lose) that it can be done.

For as the Saints go marching into Miami this weekend to take on the Indianapolis Colts, I think the game may very well carry with it a slightly prophetic symbol of our very own transition as a nation into “better” times of recovery, continued rebuilding and hope for a tomorrow where we won’t take things for granted, where financial crisis or natural disasters will not shake us or hold us down for very long.  When we will be stronger than ever, ready to take on that next “challenge” that will make us better/stronger.

If you aren’t already humming the tune to yourself, here is Mr. Louis Armstrong to remind you of a great song - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyLjbMBpGDA

Enjoy the game!  No matter what the outcome, the game already is a winner in my books.  Even if my Cowboys didn’t make it……

How has 20-10 gone for you so far?

Everything you hoped it would be?  And, perhaps, more?

Well….it is all in the eye of the beholder, eh?

My first weekend of 20-10 started like this.

Our car was overheating….in negative degree wind chill weather in Minnesota on a Sunday morning, heading north to visit my sister and her husband to watch some football.  We opted out of continuing our journey and chose to go to the car mechanic the next day to see what was going on.

$1,000 and several “wasted” hours (and a week) later, I had to let out a chuckle.  20-10 was supposed to start out “great”, was going to be the year/decade to lift the curse of all those crazy quirks in our life that were inadvertantly “unexpected”. 

Yet, this year started out like any other day, weekend, month, year should, right? 

The thing that brought me out of my new year’s “funk”, with the newly purchased $1K worth of car expenditures, was the fact that we had to get our car fixed, in order to get down to Iowa to see my Dad and celebrate a benchmark moment in his life.

My father, a proud German farmer of most of his lifetime, had just turned 75-years-old and my siblings and I were going to honor his life altogether as a family.  I didn’t want to miss it for the world.

As I paid my lovely $1K bill, somewhat begrudgingly, the attendant behind the desk, obviously intune with my doldrums, silently said:

“Not that I want to compete with you or anything” he consoled as I pondered where my money was going to, “but my dad just died yesterday.”

Silence.

My heart sunk.

Here I was complaining about spending an unexpected chunk of change and this young man didn’t have a father to go see to celebrate his birthday….rather, another type of occasion.

Amazing what perspective can do to you, isn’t it?

Just like this past week, with the earthquake in Haiti….no matter what “storm” comes my way, I can be thankful that I am not stuck underneath a pile of rubble, unable to breathe, eat or drink clean water.  

I am blessed….even if it means I get to lay down a bunch of cash in order to go see my Dad a few hundred miles away.  At least I have that change and at least I have my Dad.

Whatever you may find as your latest “storm” or obstacle, I hope you can find that gentle reminder that keeps your perspective on the bigger picture and the equilibration of certainty:  There will always be someone with a bigger jet and always someone with a deeper hole of pain/hurt/sorrow. 

That, my friend, you can count on no matter what. 
That is something you can’t put a price on.

Henry and Grandpa at his 75th birthday

A special thanks to Ross Levin, for his indirect contribution to this article.  You can view his article HERE.

Do you want to write your first book this week, to kick off the new year?

That’s my challenge for you this year, actually today!  By the end of this email, I want you to become an author.

Hold that thought, now that I’ve got your attention, I’ll get to my point shortly.

Now that we have not only started a new year, but also a new decade, I have felt even a bit more intentional about making some changes/shifts into my life this year.  I realized that I can choose to make changes at any time in my life, however, there is something about starting a new decade that makes this year a bit more exceptional when I think about not only making changes, but actually doing them in a big way and impacting the next 10 years, let alone next 365 days!

Normally when I write my vision (a.k.a. intentions) for the next year (or decade), I write a whole page with a very specific description and tuck it away for a later review to stay on track with what it is that I envision for my life.

Have you thought about what you will focus on for the next 10 years?  Any big changes in you (and your life) that would like to see happen?
What habits have you fostered for yourself in focusing on what you want in any given year?

This past decade I wanted to move out of the Midwest, buy a house, get married, start a family, travel to New Zealand/Hawaii/Ireland and write a book.  Check, check, check, check and check!  Every single one of these items were things I had written down at some point in the last decade - definitely long before they became a reality.

Yet the older I get, I find that just checking things off the list or accomplishing a lot of stuff is not really my game plan anymore. 
This year/decade I want to do things differently.  Simpler.  Easier.  The older I get, the more simple I find that I want to live and experience life.

I was inspired by a recent article that a local financial wealth builder, Ross Levin, wrote in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, that speaks to this very idea of simplifying and keep it real for myself for the next ten years, starting in 20-TEN.

Levin shared that “Ernest Hemingway once was asked to write a book in six words. To some, it may be his best work. “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

The interesting thing about this work was that it could be read many different ways, as Levin shared.

“Is this about a failed pregnancy? Is it about people who wanted to conceive yet were unable to do so? Is it about a grandparent being kept away from their grandchild?”

To me, it doesn’t matter what Hemingway meant.  What inspired me about this book in six words is that I want to write my own “book” to describe my intentions (goals/purpose) for 2010.

After just a few moments of reflecting, I came up with my six words for my book.

Be fearless.  Live simply.  Love unconditionally. 

I like that.   The easiest book I have ever written.  I can remember it and hold it near and dear to my heart/mind/soul as this year, and the next, pass by.  No matter what happens, or doesn’t happen, as long as I stay true to my new “book”/mantra, I know that great things will happen.

What will you intend for the next 10 years?  Your next year?

I encourage you, if you haven’t already, to review your own last ten years, or even just 2009, and decide if you want the next ten yers to look the same or different.  It has been proven that 80% or more of what gets written down, and focused on, gets done, so choose wisely the words you want to commit to these next 10 years.

I can’t wait to read your book!  Whether you feel like Hemingway himself or are still a work in progress (aren’t we all), send your finished product my way if you want me to help you stay accountable and we’ll check back in again by 2019…..make this your best decade ever.