'Soldiering On'
Once you can see what you want out of life, remain determined to get it and it is more likely to come your way, so long as you stay honest in purpose and true to your dreams.
Before the age of nine, like many boys of the time, I wanted to be a long distance lorry driver when I grew up, or a train driver, or a crane operator; and if neither of those three jobs came my way, I told myself that I'd settle for being a cowboy or an international footballer. My father had played football for his country( Southern Ireland), and if he, why not his eldest son? When I reached thirteen, being of sound voice, my dreams turned to thoughts of becoming the next Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin of Windybank Estate, just as soon as I was old enough to travel to the USA to sign a big recording contract. Then, as I entered my fourteenth year, along came James Dean in the film, 'Rebel without a cause' and I knew from that moment on that I had discovered my true vocation; attracting good women with my bad-boy ways.
Whatever else the handsome James Dean had going for him, his greatest asset was undoubtedly his ability to make the women in his life go weak at the knees whenever he was around. He was the ideal bad boy that every decent girl wanted to turn good, and it was this wild streak about him, along with a number of flaws, that made him the ideal marriage project for a woman of substance to change. Every new bride sees her man as her latest project.
Because of a bad traffic accident and legthy period of hospitalisation, when I was told that I'd never walk again, when I did start walking again, because my right leg was a few inches shorter than my left, I was left with a pronounced limp. At first, this defect naturally worried me, especially as I wanted to appear appealing to the ladies and my vanity looked at the physical deformity as an eyesore. Because I had survived injuries that had been destined too kill me, along with walking again against the prognostications of the medics, for a further four years after leaving hospital, I annually attended the hospital as a guinea-pig specimen of medical curiosity for conferences of trainee medics.
One day at Batley Hospital, while waiting to see the consultant for a follow up visit, I saw a man who limped when he walked across the floor. The thing about this man however, was that he didn't look ungainly when he strode the floor. In fact, he moved in a more captivating way than most able-bodied walkers. He possessed a gentlemanly sort of leisurely glide, as though he was 'Top Dog' and the hospital was there foremost for his benefit above all others.
After we had spoken briefly, he could tell that I was worried that I'd always limp when I walked. Then, quietly he told me, 'Don't worry your young head, lad. All the best folk across the land limp. There's nothing wrong with having a limp, providing you can turn it to good use. I soon found that out once I'd learned to limp with dignity.' (I paraphrase).
As I grew older and entered into manhood, I too developed the art of learning to limp with dignity. I also discovered over the years, that none of the best women on offer care two figs whether the man upon whose elbow they attach themselves to, limps or not; or for that matter, has a few character traits that might require subtle tweaking. Indeed, it would seem that women look not for perfection in their man and are too wise to trust it when it pretends to exist and shows its face.
Without wanting to sound the least bit arrogant, while handsome enough, though not the most handsome man on the block, I have never since manhood, been without an attractive looking woman in my life; mostly a woman of a good persuasion, but I have to admit, they have sometimes been of more questionable reputation, and a few times, downright bad!
When I look back over my life today and consider the main influences upon it, hasn't been famous or renown people who taught me the most or the best, but rather the everyday down-to-earth person one meets any day of the week. The man in Batley Hospital with his graceful glide across the floor, taught me more about catching a good woman's eye, far more than I ever could have ever learned from James Dean; that is, even had the film star lived next door to me, or for that matter, had he lived long enough to tell the tale!
So all you out there who worry about height, size, weight, walk, facial blemish, nervous tic or whatever; so long as you can learn to glide across the floor as gracefully as a swan, besides possessing those qualities that all potential mates treasure, such as truthfulness, faithfulness, generosity of spirit, emotional expressiveness, loyalty, dependability, sensitivity, along with the ability to communicate, discuss problems, acknowledge one's mistakes, hold hands not grudges, cuddle, comfort and look out for; all of the rest matters not one jot!
Now that I come to think of it, every girl and boy who was brought up in a happy home with loving parents during the 1940's and 1950's, were brought up with those values and qualities which I've listed above. That is probably why, for those who got married then, the overwhelming majority of their marriages worked out and are still going strong, whereas lots of unions today aren't.
Also, after the second world war, the returning soldiers and potential marriage partners the women picked as a husband, were definitely more attractive a prospect for them than men are today. And while most returning soldiers carried war wounds and battle scars; I bet the vast majority of them limped with dignity." William Forde: Copyright: September 5th, 2016. (Amended and Reviewed: April, 2018).
Before the age of nine, like many boys of the time, I wanted to be a long distance lorry driver when I grew up, or a train driver, or a crane operator; and if neither of those three jobs came my way, I told myself that I'd settle for being a cowboy or an international footballer. My father had played football for his country( Southern Ireland), and if he, why not his eldest son? When I reached thirteen, being of sound voice, my dreams turned to thoughts of becoming the next Frank Sinatra or Dean Martin of Windybank Estate, just as soon as I was old enough to travel to the USA to sign a big recording contract. Then, as I entered my fourteenth year, along came James Dean in the film, 'Rebel without a cause' and I knew from that moment on that I had discovered my true vocation; attracting good women with my bad-boy ways.
Whatever else the handsome James Dean had going for him, his greatest asset was undoubtedly his ability to make the women in his life go weak at the knees whenever he was around. He was the ideal bad boy that every decent girl wanted to turn good, and it was this wild streak about him, along with a number of flaws, that made him the ideal marriage project for a woman of substance to change. Every new bride sees her man as her latest project.
Because of a bad traffic accident and legthy period of hospitalisation, when I was told that I'd never walk again, when I did start walking again, because my right leg was a few inches shorter than my left, I was left with a pronounced limp. At first, this defect naturally worried me, especially as I wanted to appear appealing to the ladies and my vanity looked at the physical deformity as an eyesore. Because I had survived injuries that had been destined too kill me, along with walking again against the prognostications of the medics, for a further four years after leaving hospital, I annually attended the hospital as a guinea-pig specimen of medical curiosity for conferences of trainee medics.
One day at Batley Hospital, while waiting to see the consultant for a follow up visit, I saw a man who limped when he walked across the floor. The thing about this man however, was that he didn't look ungainly when he strode the floor. In fact, he moved in a more captivating way than most able-bodied walkers. He possessed a gentlemanly sort of leisurely glide, as though he was 'Top Dog' and the hospital was there foremost for his benefit above all others.
After we had spoken briefly, he could tell that I was worried that I'd always limp when I walked. Then, quietly he told me, 'Don't worry your young head, lad. All the best folk across the land limp. There's nothing wrong with having a limp, providing you can turn it to good use. I soon found that out once I'd learned to limp with dignity.' (I paraphrase).
As I grew older and entered into manhood, I too developed the art of learning to limp with dignity. I also discovered over the years, that none of the best women on offer care two figs whether the man upon whose elbow they attach themselves to, limps or not; or for that matter, has a few character traits that might require subtle tweaking. Indeed, it would seem that women look not for perfection in their man and are too wise to trust it when it pretends to exist and shows its face.
Without wanting to sound the least bit arrogant, while handsome enough, though not the most handsome man on the block, I have never since manhood, been without an attractive looking woman in my life; mostly a woman of a good persuasion, but I have to admit, they have sometimes been of more questionable reputation, and a few times, downright bad!
When I look back over my life today and consider the main influences upon it, hasn't been famous or renown people who taught me the most or the best, but rather the everyday down-to-earth person one meets any day of the week. The man in Batley Hospital with his graceful glide across the floor, taught me more about catching a good woman's eye, far more than I ever could have ever learned from James Dean; that is, even had the film star lived next door to me, or for that matter, had he lived long enough to tell the tale!
So all you out there who worry about height, size, weight, walk, facial blemish, nervous tic or whatever; so long as you can learn to glide across the floor as gracefully as a swan, besides possessing those qualities that all potential mates treasure, such as truthfulness, faithfulness, generosity of spirit, emotional expressiveness, loyalty, dependability, sensitivity, along with the ability to communicate, discuss problems, acknowledge one's mistakes, hold hands not grudges, cuddle, comfort and look out for; all of the rest matters not one jot!
Now that I come to think of it, every girl and boy who was brought up in a happy home with loving parents during the 1940's and 1950's, were brought up with those values and qualities which I've listed above. That is probably why, for those who got married then, the overwhelming majority of their marriages worked out and are still going strong, whereas lots of unions today aren't.
Also, after the second world war, the returning soldiers and potential marriage partners the women picked as a husband, were definitely more attractive a prospect for them than men are today. And while most returning soldiers carried war wounds and battle scars; I bet the vast majority of them limped with dignity." William Forde: Copyright: September 5th, 2016. (Amended and Reviewed: April, 2018).
