One Moment in Time
Carpe Diem

This essay is my attempt to be a Rogerian psychotherapist…on myself. I’m serious. I am a dreamer. I won’t change that for anything. However, dreaming is a costly emotional experience. I do dream dreams that never were and say why not. I have no problem fighting the good fight. I fully understand what Teddy Roosevelt said about the man in the arena.

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

While I don’t fear the fight, what rattles me is the delay. I am caught between a rock and a hard spot. I have promised two schools in Taunggyi, Myanmar where my three granddaughters attend, that I would be back with laptops for both schools for all the students. Laptops will assist 1250 students to become all they can be academically. That will cost me $400,000 for age-appropriate laptops . Additionally, I need to pay to get the Internet reception improved to the two schools so that the students can utilize the schools’ laptops.

I can’t even start to raise the money until I get the designation from the IRS that We Are Family in Myanmar, Inc. is a not-for-profit charity. My waiting for approval has been exacerbated by the recent government shutdown for over a month. I can’t help the IRS catch up due to the shutdown and then address my request. Therefore, I sit here and wait….

When I get my approval, I’ll have less than nine months to raise a half million dollars. I know that I can raise that amount. Nonetheless, the pressure is on to accomplish that task of raising the money.

Therefore, this essay is a dry-run attempt on my part to explain to potential donors my situation. I need to explain to all of my readers what drives me. Some of the energy that mobilizes my effort has to do with my two dances with death. Doing the dance woke me up to living. If you haven’t seen the light due to doing a dance, you will be tempted to dismiss my drive. If I were in your shoes, I would probably think the same thing. However, I’m not in your shoes.

I wouldn’t want to endure either of my dances again, but I would never delete either of them from my life. My dances allowed me to come alive…really alive. I’m a happy 76-year old guy with a purpose. I want to make my mark in the world in the time remaining in my journey down the yellow brick road of my life. My mark will be on 1250 kids in two schools in Taunggyi.

My journey all started when I walked into my tour guide’s living room where I found my tour guide’s daughter, Ti Ti was a nine year old who greeted me with this question, “Hi. My name is Ti Ti. Do you want to play some games?” We played Scrabble for less than an hour, but it was more than enough time to realize that I met my granddaughter.

This is Ti Ti and I playing Scrabble five years ago.

This is my family last year.

She was the bridge to link her family to mine. Ti Ti and her two younger sisters are my granddaughters. Additionally, the children with whom my granddaughters attend school are my extended family.

Now, put yourself into my shoes. You have done the dance with death twice, you realize that your clock is ticking, and you love your family. However, they need laptops to fully be educated in an emerging country. What would you do? Man, this will be the single most important thing that I will have ever accomplished. I have one moment in time to make my mark on 1250 young children who live on the other side of the world. I can’t fail them and with your help I won’t.

Now, do me a favor. Click on Play. What you will listen to is a lyrical autobiography about where I am.

One Moment in Time

Each day I live
I want to be
A day to give
The best of me
I'm only one
But not alone
My finest day
Is yet unknown

I broke my heart
Fought every gain
To taste the sweet
I face the pain
I rise and fall
Yet through it all
This much remains

I want one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

I've lived to be
The very best
I want it all
No time for less
I've laid the plans
Now lay the chance
Here in my hands

Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

You're a winner for a lifetime
If you seize that one moment in time
Make it shine

Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will be
I will be
I will be free
I will be
I will be free

I want my one moment in time. I was lucky to be able to lead death on my life’s dancefloor. I know that my clock is ticking. My entire life can be summed up in this single stanza. I was blessed by nearly dying. I want to put meaning into that blessing…by helping others. All that I want in my remaining time on my journey is this one moment in time.

This is where you enter my moment in time. I want your help. You can help me provide a moment of time for me. However, it is in giving that we get. My reason for successfully doing the dance will benefit 1250 children. Nevertheless, I will be rewarded with my moment in time.

Finally, please read carefully this final paragraph, because it will affect you also. I need three things from you. The first is your gift to help cover the expenses for the laptops and improved Internet service to the two schools. The second is that I need your time writing and calling your friends about this moment in time. Send them the link to this article. Lastly, I want to invite you to plan to return with me during my winter break from teaching. Come back with me for a couple of weeks around the middle of December of 2019. You may return back home having experienced one moment in time. Our clocks are ticking. Carpe diem.

Give me one moment in time
When I'm more than I thought I could be
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
And the answers are all up to me
Give me one moment in time
When I'm racing with destiny
Then in that one moment of time
I will feel
I will feel eternity

One Moment in Time was sung by Dana Winner.