My Year in Review (2011)

The other day I was talking to a friend about how this past year was an interesting one and he told me that he puts no stock in New Years because to him it's an arbitrary period that people made up to measure time. He continued to elaborate on how, in a sense, the feelings of a new beginning are fake because nothing new really occurs during the transition from one year into the next. I found myself completely disagreeing on every point of his except for one: New Years is an arbitrary measurement of time. However, we all need a time to stop and think about the things we’ve done and the things we continue to do; call it a time of self-reflection and self-analysis. This is what New Years is for me and millions of people around the world. It’s a set ellipsis in our lives where we can celebrate the things we did right and remember the things we’d do differently in an attempt to avoid making those same mistakes in the future. It’s this reflection on the past and the hope for the future that makes life so beautiful.

My life this year has been pretty hectic but very rewarding. Since bringing in 2011 with friends over looking Baltimore Harbor, my schedule has consisted of a balancing act between being a father and a student. Every month during the school year in Chicago, I fly back to Baltimore to see my son for a week. As a student, it’s been a challenge to balance homework, my flight schedule, sports, and aviation related fraternal obligations with my trips back home to see my son and family. However, seeing my son is the most important to-do on the list and I’m proud to say that I’ve been able to do all of these things successfully.

Seeing Joey grow up this year has been a real privilege. When I left for school again after last winter break, he still wasn’t talking very much but with the help of a speech therapist he’s been going to see, he now talks all the time. We’re still working on his annunciations but the progress he has made, even since last summer, has been tenfold. I’m so proud of him and find myself smiling every time he points to a house and says the word “house” or sees an airplane and says the word “plane”. Since I left for school a year and a half ago, I’ve also made a commitment to share my love of aviation with my son as much as possible. So on my visits home or when he spent most of the summer with me, I took him down to Washington, DC a lot to see the two Air & Space Museums and one of his favorite places to play is a playground right next to the BWI airport. I believe it’s an important thing for him to understand what I’m doing when I’m away and I hope that this will help him find his passion later on in life.

My family has been great with year (as always) as well. My parents have settled into their new place in Pennsylvania quite comfortably this year and my oldest little sister just moved out there this month as well. Jim, too, bought a house but he bought it just outside of Baltimore and remains in Maryland with my littlest little sister. I also got to see my extended family this past summer and had a blast with them at the beach! It’s very seldom that we’re all together anywhere but when we are I’m reminded of what a gift I was given. Little Joey had fun, too, and it was nice seeing him so excited to swim considering he used to be quite afraid of the water.

As far as my progress in being a student is concerned, I’m doing well (especially after last semester). A year ago, I was coming off my first semester of being back in school after a seven year break. Things could have been better but I worked through the differences in multitasking in school versus having a full time job and I’m happy where I’m at. This year was also a good year for my fraternity and some of the community service we were involved in included cleaning up nearby airports and being ‘airplane crash victims’ during a mass casualty exercise at O’Hare International Airport. My flight training is progressing very well, also. I’ve moved to another instructor after my last instructor accepted a job with American Eagle Airlines (good job TJ!!) and I’m extremely happy with where I’m at and how often I get to fly. Look for a post on the overview of my entire flight training process to come in the next month or two… there’s a lot to talk about here.

Altogether, the year 2011 was an awesome one for me. And while I spent it juggling my responsibilities between three different States, I’m truly thankful for the experiences I’ve had and the new insights I’ve gained. I’m especially thankful for my family who continue to support me wholeheartedly and my friends who spend a good amount of time ferrying me between the places I need to be and the airports that bring me there. Life is an amazing adventure and I’m blessed to be on the adventure I’ve been dealt.

So Happy New Year’s everybody! Drink up, drive safely, be merry, and when looking down the path that you’ve decided to travel, try and be mindful of the paths that have brought you there. They’re your stories and therefore yours to keep or change. Cheers.

"If you show someone their future, they have no future. If you take away the mystery, you take away the hope." - Paycheck