Walk Into the Future

Tag: Jasper FL

  • Back to the Future

    (Image by Tumisu from Pixabay)

    “Opportunities don’t happen; you create them”.

    (Chris Grosser)

    What did you want to be growing up?

    This was an icebreaker question in a recent meeting we had at work.

    It seemed like a simple question, but it made me pause for a second.  Why do you ask?  Great question as always Maria! 😊

    Well, I had my mind set on being a forest ranger when I entered high school.  I didn’t know anyone who was a ranger, but I always saw them around growing up in rural northern Florida.  My hometown is Jasper, Florida which is right on the Florida / Georgia line.  It’s known for farming and fishing, so I spent a lot of time outdoors and wandering in the woods.

    I thought being a ranger would allow me to enjoy this aspect of growing up and help make a difference in the world.  I researched everything about becoming a ranger and joined 4H to develop additional skills.  I thought being in the woods and protecting the environment was going to be my career.

    Well, that all changed when I took a TV Productions class in my senior year. We got a chance to host live TV segments that aired in our school.  I never thought I would enjoy that aspect of the class but found a new joy going to school.  We got a chance to produce segments and conduct interviews with different topics ranging from sports, education and life after high school.

    I changed my mind about becoming a forest ranger due to our TV Productions course.  I started watching nightly news shows looking for pointers I could leverage in our class.  Journalism was going to be my new career, and I was excited about this.   I put a lot of extra effort into this course and a few of us were requested to video football and basketball games and provide the tape to coaches. This was an exciting time and showed another aspect to the course.  I was hooked!  Journalism was my thing.

    Fast forward a bit and I received a partial Journalism scholarship to Lake City Community College.  Turns out school was not my thing at that point in my life.  I flunked out of community college and joined the Air Force.  I had an outstanding Air Force career but never forgot about journalism.

    I started the Walk into the Future blog to share adventures and stories.  It’s not a traditional journalism role but I have people around the world reading my blog and sharing experiences with me.

    I’m not writing for a large newspaper or covering stories from New York as a photojournalist, but I am chronicling adventures and stories to share with folks around the world.  This may have been an unconventional route to get where I wanted to be back in high school but I’m here pounding out articles weekly.

    Hooray for that TV Productions class back in Jasper, Florida!  It opened opportunities and doors for me in life.  Well done, Mrs. Klepper!

    What did YOU want to be when you grew up?  Let’s make it happen.

    Irie!

    Calvin Williams

    “It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop”.

    (Confucius)

  • Five Minute Thursday: Favorite teacher

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    “My teacher gave me the best gift of all…believing in me”.

    (Unknown)

    The Five-Minute Thursday writing prompt has been a fun detour with my blog writing. Never thought I would enjoy a scripted prompt this much, but it has become a staple writing exercise for me.

    So, let’s give the Five-Minute Thursday writing prompt another run.  Not sure if I shared this in an earlier post but I am a proficient typist.  I signed up for 10th grade Typing 1 class with designs to meet girls in high school.  Turns out the skills I learned in this class as a 15-year-old have propelled my professional life and opened numerous doors for me.  I would not be able to crank out weekly blog posts without the ability to type and put my thoughts down. I type as fast as I think so getting a lot of content completed is an easy task for me.  Never imagined my attempt to meet girls in high school would provide me with a skill that helped me separate from my peers.

    My fifth prompt for Five Minute Thursday is:  My Favorite teacher—Mattie Fouraker.

    I officially met Mrs. Fouraker in the 10th grade, and she was my typing teacher.  She took a special interest in me and decided that I would learn how to type well in the year we had together.  She also decided that I was not in her class to meet young ladies and put me on the far end of her class so my interactions would be limited.  She made a point to get onto anyone who distracted me while I was in her class.  This set-up created a typing incubator that allowed me to thrive in her class and taught me a valuable skill that I leverage daily.  I was recognized as the best typist in class with a 65 words per minute with 99% accuracy rating—not bad for someone in class just to meet girls. 😊  Our football coach always made a point to identify I had the best hands on the football team—not bad for a wide receiver.

    Mrs. Fouraker made a point to keep taps on me throughout the rest of my time in high school.  She always made me feel special and provided life advice on the best way forward.  I never took another class with her, but she continued to mentor me daily.  I progressed to Typing 2 the following year but did not enjoy the class as much because I was just another student to the teacher in that class.  My typing skill level remained sharp based on the tools Mrs. Fouraker helped me develop in my time with her.

    Our relationship continued during my time in the Air Force.  We shared cards and letters over the years that helped us stay connected over the decades.  She remains one of my biggest advocates and follows the Walk into the Future blog weekly.  I will visit her when time permits when I return home to Jasper, Florida.  Mrs. Fouraker lives one town over in White Springs, Florida and it puts a smile on my face when I stop by.

    Amazing what a teacher that believes in you can do to propel your life forward!

    Thanks, Mrs. Fouraker for guiding me over the years! 😊

    Who is your favorite teacher?  Do they know that?

    Irie!

    “The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery”.

    (Mark Van Doren)

  • The Walk into the Future blog continues to grow

    “Blogging is like work, but without coworkers thwarting you at every turn”.

    (Scott Adams)

    The first Walk into the Future blog article was introduced to the world on May 21, 2018.

    Yep, four straight years of creating blog content and sharing it every week (mostly) with anyone willing to read about my thoughts, adventures, travel, and leadership pursuits.

    Looking back my writing style has changed and grown over the past four years as I seek to find content that others may want to read.  Scratch that thought—I am writing content based on my life and sharing with anyone who wants to read it. 

    I never had a clear idea where this blog would take me but decided to just sit down on my laptop and create content to publish.  I did not set out on a particular direction for my articles but felt an urge to write and the blog concept seemed like a natural place to showcase my words.

    I would be lying by saying I knew four years ago I would still be writing and sharing content through this platform.  A bigger lie would have been I knew I would attract an audience of people who never met me and read my articles weekly.  My friends and family are ALMOST obligated to read this stuff so knew ya’ll would be along for the journey! 😊

    I quick THANK YOU to my day 1 folks and everyone who follow this blog and my journey.

    I did a summary blog article awhile back to highlight Walk into the Future blog stats.  Decided to do that again for this article to showcase the continued growth for the blog and the impact it has in the world.  I am amazed daily when I get a new blog follower from another country.  This puts a huge smile on my face because I never thought starting a blog in Tallahassee, Florida would generate international interest.

    Martin Lawrence once joked that Michael Jackson was BANGING in Bucharest.  Well, I get weekly blog views in Romania so I can joke I am banging in Bucharest too—not as big as Michael Jackson but happy someone over there likes my work.

    I will continue to produce content for the blog as long as it is still fun to me and people want to read my work.  Let’s see how long we can continue to Walk into the Future!

    What topics do you want me to write about in the future?  No pun intended!

    Irie!

    Wordpress

    Happy Anniversary with WordPress.com!

    You registered on WordPress.com 4 years ago.

    Thanks for flying with us.  Keep up the good blogging.

    Walk into the future blog stats May 2022

     

    “Blogging is a conversation, not a code”.

    (Mike Butcher)

     

     

  • Turning the corner on COVID-19

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    (Image by Sergei Tokmakov, Esq. from Pixabay) 

    “Choose to be optimistic.  It feels better”.

    (Dalai Lama)

    I do not know if we have truly turned the corner on COVID-19 but it does feel like we have made some progress.

    The rollout of the vaccine has been moving forward the past three months and my excitement is firmly rooted in the fact I have family and friends who are fully vaccinated.  Happy to report I got my first dose of the Moderna vaccine on Friday and should be fully vaccinated by the time you read this article.

    I realize there is more work to be done before we get to herd immunity but there are positive signs daily.  We need to maintain a level of caution and not get too far ahead to ensure these positive vibes remains.

    My excitement for turning the corner is because I was able to visit my family in northern Florida and did not feel like I was putting them at risk.  My mom, aunts and uncles are completely vaccinated and this was the first visit where I did not have the same concerns about possibly bringing the virus into their homes.  Please note, we still maintained physcial distancing and masks wearing but mentally it felt like we were safe again.  I have not hugged my mom in months so a simple side hug this time was a welcomed aspect of the visit.

    My goal is to have my second shot completed before I head back up to visit with family and friends again.  The peace of mind knowing everyone has been vaccinated will allow us to spend a bit more time together and not worry about passing a virus on to a family member. 

    The concept of physical distancing and how we fellowship will probably be changed forever.  Simple things we did around the holidays will most likely change—I do not know if I will ever be comfortable again with our large Thanksgiving gatherings again.  We set up tables and chairs outside for Thanksgiving 2020 and this process went better than I expected.  The weather was great and family was able to spend time together but not in a closed environment. I see this being the new tradition as long as the weather cooperates.

    I hope the Walk into the Future blog readers are in the process of getting vaccinated. 

    I questioned the rapid pace of the vaccine creation and deployment but put those concerns aside in order to ensure I was protected.  This protection extends to my family, friends and coworkers—getting the vaccine is my way to get closer to normal again.  I would like to get back to being a running tourist again in 2021.  This will only happen when more and more people get the vaccine—here’s hoping herd immunity is a real thing!

    Note:  I got sent home from work the day after I wrote this article due to contact tracing.  COVID-19 is still alive and well—stay safe!

    When are you getting the vaccine?  What are you looking forward to once herd immunity is gained?

    “The nearer a man comes to a calm mind, the closer he is to strength”.

    (Marcus Aurelius)

  • Congrats to the Class of 2020—Go Jayla!

    Grad 2020

    (Image by Annalise Batista from Pixabay)

    “Follow your fear”.

    (Tina Fey)

    We are halfway through 2020 and the ebb and flows of the year have been tremendous.  Most people I know came into 2020 with major goals, plans, and the right mindset to make positive things happen.  We continue to move forward but the COVID-19 pandemic has adjusted how we Walk into the Future daily.

    Looking forward to getting back to things that resemble normal life but do not know if/when that will be possible.  The term new normal is being thrown around and means we must redefine what is considered normal in the future.

    One thing that does not require a new normal is how proud I am of my niece, Jayla Williams!  We have been on a special journey for the past 24 years and I am excited to see her next money moves in the future.

    The COVID-19 pandemic reshaped a large portion of planned activities for everyone but one area we had to put on hold was celebrating Jayla’s graduation from the University of Central Florida.  Family and friends have reached out to congratulate her for this phenomenal feat, but we have not been able to gather the crew and throw the blowout party this accomplishment deserves.  No worries Jayla, we will get it in when safe! 😊

    My joy for Jayla’s graduation is because we first talked about going to college when she was 5 years old.  Some may think this is a bit young, but my goal was to create a mindset where we knew the direction of the journey.  Please note, all the work, time and effort were put in by Jayla and it was a joy for me to watch her tick off objectives towards this goal.  My role simply was support, reinforcement, someone to bounce ideas off, and a silly uncle joke when needed.

    It is amazing to look back on this journey and see the adult she has become.  I am sure this progression is nothing new for parents to view but for the cool uncle this has been an awesome ride!

    The University of Central Florida conducted virtual graduation ceremonies for each college.  The College of Business hosted the largest number of graduates which ensured we would be glued to our computers until they got to the great Williams last name. Did not realize how excited I would be sitting on my laptop waiting to officially hear Jayla Williams being declared an Integrated Business graduate from the University of Central Florida College of Business.  Luckily, I had the foresight to get my phone ready for the quick photo opportunity provided while hearing Jayla’s name.  This put a huge smile on my face, and I texted the photo to family so they could share in my joy!

    Looking forward to when we can get back together to throw the big blowout party she was expecting and deserves.  That day is coming, and we will celebrate the 24 years and counting for the journey we are on.  Cannot wait to see what the future holds for my class of 2020 graduate—big things I am sure!

    Congratulations and Go Jayla! 😊

    Uncle Calvin

     “Fall forward.  Every failed experiment is one step closer to success.  You have got to take risks”.

    (Denzel Washington)

     

  • Walking with a month of inspiration!

    Mattie inspiration project

    (Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay)

    “Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do”.

    (John Wooden)

    My Walk into the Future has provided me with a new perspective on how I see and live life.  This process has created transformations (mental and physical) which allow me to walk daily with a mission to make a difference daily.

    A great aspect to my Walk into the Future has been the great connections I make and reconnecting with friends and family.  I have mentioned one of my mentors, Mrs. Mattie Fouraker who I met in the 10th grade.  She was my Typing 1 teacher and the skills I learned from her have led to many successful outcomes for me over the years.

    I started sharing Walk into the Future blog articles with Mrs. Fouraker to show her some of the things I have been doing and a way to say thank you.  Decided to print a few articles and mailed them to her so she can have them readily available.  Got an email from her to let me know she received them and a huge surprise.

    My mission to make a difference daily and sharing blog articles inspired her to create an Inspiration Project.

    She decided to get busy and find ways to inspire others in her life daily!  My mentor put a smile on my face by emulating something I do—truly humbled when she told me what she was doing.

    She cut out my mission:  to make a difference daily and put this on her refrigerator with a monthly calendar underneath.

    Her goal is to do something to inspire someone every day of the month and record the deed on the calendar.  Thought this was a very purposeful way to inspire others and make a difference daily.  In fact, the ability to look back on a month’s worth of difference making must feel great.  I love this idea and grateful she shared her project with me.

    I will follow her lead and record my daily difference making initiatives to get a better understanding of impact AND to keep me focused.  I am sure there are days I may fall short but having a visual tool will keep me on-track.  The monthly good deeds may also lead to future blog articles—we will see!

    Challenge accepted

    So, now I challenge everyone who may read this post to join Mrs. Fouraker and me on this Inspiration Project journey to make a difference daily.  Create a calendar, excel spreadsheet, or Google doc to record who and how you made a difference today.  Do this for a day, a week, or a month to see the impact you have on the people in your daily walk.  Track your inspirations for as long as you want but thought this was a great way to highlight the importance of helping others.  Who is with me? 😊  This could also be the beginning of you establishing your own tree branches.

    Who can you inspire today?  What will you do to make it happen?  Thanks!

    “Act as if what you do makes a difference.  It does”.

    (William James)

    Note:  Mrs. Fouraker is a regular reader of the blog now. She follows along weekly on her iPad —hope you enjoyed this one and thanks for the inspiration! Hope to see you soon!😊

     

    Time to Inspire

    Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

     

  • The long journey home

    Moving Forward Feb 2020

    (Image by Bluehouse Skis from Pixabay.com)

    “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town and in his own home”.

    (Matthew 13:57)

    There’s an area I’ve had trouble making speaking inroads since I’ve been on my Walk into the Future journey—my hometown.

    Never thought my hometown would be the toughest place for me to engage, mentor and help others but it has proven to be a tough place to get invites.  The passage above is my reminder that I’m not the only one to struggle to get a message to people who know me—better folks have struggled with this same dynamic, so I guess I’m keeping great company!  It would have been easy to just give up and focus my energy into more productive environments but that would have been the simple way for me to proceed.

    Perseverance requires additional tactics to reach life and professional goals—so I decided to persevere and keep moving forward on this pursuit.

    Finally got the invite to speak during the MLK 2020 weekend at the MLK Banquet as the Keynote Speaker!  So, I went from seeking an opportunity in my hometown to having the honor of delivering an important message at the premier event of the weekend—no pressure! 😊

    My goal when speaking is always to move the crowd.  People want to be entertained, laugh a bit and take something tangible away from these events.  The theme of the weekend was:  Progression not Regression.

    Struggled a bit conducting research for the event since it was open to everyone in the community.  Different demographics, backgrounds, and denominations so I couldn’t go into the Keynote with a complete understanding of who would attend.  This freaked me out for a bit and then I decided to trust my process for building presentations—one slide at a time.

    Looked at previous presentations and blog articles to see if I already had something to fit the theme of the weekend.  Nothing matched completely but I recently completed a blog article centered around positive energy in daily interactions.  Decided to use positive energy as the progression and negative energy as regression during my speech.

    Dr. King’s 1963 I Have a Dream speech was future focused and still relevant in 2020.  Leveraged this information to continue to build the foundation of my presentation.  Didn’t get deep into Dr. King’s speech but wanted to use it to engage the audience since it was an MLK event.

    Introduced the concept of self-awareness to help audience members get a more personal appreciation of progression and regression.  Didn’t launch a deep dive on self-awareness but wanted the audience to understand how everyone can control progression and/or regression in their lives.  Self-awareness helps eliminate roadblocks, generates an Irie (positive) mindset and thoughts to create positive outcomes.

    Dr. King’s dream is still alive and believe everyone in attendance was able to discover how they can enhance progression in the community.  Really wanted them to walk out of my Keynote and seek ways to make a difference.  I left them with three questions to help seal the theme, Progression Not Regression:

    • What can you do?
    • Who can you serve?
    • What’s stopping you?

    The audience response was tremendous during my entire time with them.  I feed off audience energy and participation—they brought their ‘A’ game and I didn’t want to disappoint since I’ve been trying to get on the hometown stage for years.  Extremely happy for the opportunity and proud of the effort to Keynote this amazing event.

    Full disclosure had several aunts, cousins, childhood friends, teachers and my mom in the audience.  Nothing like your mom watching you work a room! 😊  Things happen for a reason and I enjoyed my time with the group.  Feedback has been great so far so hoping I’m going to receive requests to come back and move the crowd again.

    Side note:  our high school librarian (retired) was in attendance.  I made a point to acknowledge her during my Keynote because she allowed me to spend most of my free time in the library with her during my high school years.  I was in there so much she let me check out books to other students like I was an employee.  This is where I gained a love for books and reading which eventually led to me pursuing a PhD in Industrial/Organizational Psychology years later.  Small things lead to big results!  She said all my aggravation was well worth it, now! 😊

    How do you ensure positive energy (progression) in your daily interactions?  What techniques do you use to combat potential negative energy (regression)?

    How will you celebrate Black History month?  Thanks!

    Thanks to the Hamilton County MLK committee for putting me on!

    “Home is where one starts from”.

    (T.S. Eliot)

    MLK 2020

     (MLK 2020 Keynote, Jasper, FL.)