Kat

I grew up an Army dependent and lived in some very interesting places. I was born in Philadelphia and lived there one year. We then moved to New Jersey, Michigan, Arizona and Alabama. What I remember vividly at age 5 was that my Dad was the Assistant Athletic Director at West Point, N.Y. We were there 4 years and I can still close my eyes and see the academy grounds, the cannons, the cadets graduating. I was taken to virtually every Army sporting event there was! Bobby Knight was the basketball coach at that time. I used to come home from the games and say...well, my Mother decided I could not keep going to basketball games due to his "style" of coaching. Next was Ft. Leavenworth where my most vivid memory was seeing a tornado turn an MP's car on it's side. That was a short year and *poof* off to Belgium. Aahhh, best 3 years of my life. I went to a Canadian school and spoke fluent French. We lived off base in a three story house on a cobblestone street. I remember skiing in France and Austria, flowers in Holland, riding to the top of the Eiffel Tower and visiting World War I battlegrounds in France (Vimy Ridge). This is a time in my life where I read and read and wrote and wrote and was incredibly active in sports. We returned from abroad and were assigned to the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. For me, this meant 2 years of Catholic school. I did a happy dance when I started High School in Honolulu, Hawaii and the private schools were "all full." I was one of those disco kids -- always at the skating rink, down at Pearl Harbor, skipping school or riding the waves at the beach. The best birthday of my life was in Hawaii when I turned 16. My parents took all of us to a very nice restaurant, followed by a horse drawn carriage ride for me and them and a night at a comedy club. We went back to D.C. after Hawaii, and I finished High School there. I moved away from home within a month of turning 18, and had my son just 2 months shy of my 19th birthday. Needless to say, I had what I would call a very happy childhood, despite the fact that I was fiercely independent, stubborn, and always stirring things up! I definitely paved the way for my brother and two sisters...My family is very close; we always have been and always will be.
I lived in Cheyenne, Wyoming and Los Angeles in my late teens, then spent the majority of my early-mid adult years in the Washington, D.C. suburbs. I moved to Denver in 1997 to be closer to my family. Where did the time go?
I'm still young at heart and I refuse to grow old. And if I must grow old I'm going to so gracefully. I'm at the point in my life where I am very focused on my writing, my career, and the beautiful family that God has blessed me with. I have many passions: writing (poems, screenplays, song lyrics), music, being a vegetarian, and being a giver to those in need topping that list. Other interests include listening to live music, day trips to the Mountains or casinos, working out, swimming, taking pictures, dining out at new places, watching documentaries and movies, walks, playing guitar and keyboards, visiting with family, seeing an occasional ballet or play, Starbucks, browsing music/book stores and any type of museum. I'm also trying to stay reasonably fluent in Spanish as I lost the fluency in French years ago.
I'm a total "pet" person, and had two cats, Jade and Socks, from late 1992/early 1993 until recently. Socks finally succumbed to old age and health issues on 5/25/07 at age 17. How lucky was I to receive a lifetime (his lifetime) of love???? And as my son can tell you, there is no such thing as an "ordinary" cat. On 1/27/2008 we lost our Ricco Suave man -- my sisters' dog of 5 years.
Socks taught me the Art of Accompaniment. If you don't know what Accompaniment means, look it up. It is a musical term, but you can apply it to your acts of love, respect, kindness, etc. to the aged, the infirmed, the sick, and the dying; whether human, feline, or canine...
My lil' girl Jade was an "only child" until late July 2007 when she was joined by kittens Francine and Fluffy. I also have my sisters' and parents pets to love on...Lady, Noel, Simpka, Honey Bunny, Sasha, Sweet Pea and Motley Bear Crew. I can only hope and pray that my Kitty Angel and my Suave man are waiting...at the Rainbow Bridge...for me...
As far as random things you should know about me; here goes: men with dark eyes and dark skin turn my head and melt my heart; I find intelligence and an open mind in anyone I meet or talk to very refreshing; assumptions allow the best in life to pass you by; the underdog is whom I root for; a lion sleeps in the heart of every brave man; I believe in six degrees of separation; angels exist and I have met them; music is food for the soul.
The MOST IMPORTANT goal in my life is to finish the books my Dad and I are writing. I call his life borrowed time; he has always called it a second chance...i.e. the birth of "Second Chance Enterprises, Inc." With the return of colon cancer (stage 4), the reality is that my Dad might not see his dream to fruition, we (my family) will for him...
What you should really know about me...
I am most happy when I am being myself, doing what I like to do, and it has taken me a long time and a lot of work to get to this place...
...Who am I to ask why, when I am much more than what I was when I began?
Let go of that nagging feeling that something could go wrong. For whatever may happen, you can always choose a way to move forward. Let go of your resentment and anger over things that are beyond your control. Do the very best with where you are, with what you have, and that will be more than enough. Let go of the pain you carry from things that happened long ago. Allow yourself to experience the glorious freedom of forgiveness. Let go of the needs that you don't really need, that keep your life so anxious and complicated. Find real fulfillment not in getting, but in being. Let go of the regrets, the disappointments and distress. Choose to follow the very best of the possibilities that beckon you forward. Let go of all the excuses you have for not living fully. Give beauty and meaning to the life and the world that you're in right now.
Ralph Marston