On September 10th, 1959 I was born. I frankly do not remember much of the day, which leads me to believe the stories of a quick and easy birth. On this day of celebration, as another year soars past me, I am moved to think about this year in my life.

I'm not going to go into all the details of it. Suffice it to say that I have had my ups and downs. I have known great love and I have known disappointments and despair. I have experienced great growth, and devastating pruning (which in turn will lead to more growth).

Birthdays are known for gift giving, and if I'm lucky I'll get a fantastic new tie from the girls :) If not, no big deal... they freely give their love to me every day, and for that I am grateful enough. But I did not invite you here to beg for gifts or to shame you into remembering my birthday... no you are here only because I love you. And for once I want to give YOU a gift. If I had the money to buy you all a car I might (but I'm not Oprah) or give you all a free copy of my book (but I'm not Tony Robbins - yet)... I can not give you a gift of anything material... something that will fade in its glory, and be gone before you truly understood what it meant in the first place.

I'm here today to share the date of my birth with you. I'm here to share with you; to give a gift to you of the love that I hold in my heart for each and everyone of you. You have been invited here because in some way, you have touched my life and I am so very grateful for you! There are not words enough to express to you what you mean to me. I know that I would not be the man I am today, without you.

Over this last year, I want to especially thank my girls. We've gone through so much together you and I, and I have always felt your love. I am always reminded what unconditional love is when I think of you girls. To Diane I am grateful that you have been understanding and in so have taught me understanding. To mom and dad, I want to thank you for your love and generosity. You have taught me the true meaning of giving. To my family - my brothers and sisters, thank you for your willingness to be there for me. I know in my stubbornness I have not always walked through your open door, but I always knew it was open, and I am grateful for that feeling of security you always gave me. To Nancy ~ I am so grateful to you. There is not one single person in my life that has taught me more than you have taught me about myself in this last year. You have put me on a path of discovery that will be undisputably enlightening, and I am so grateful for you, for that. There are so many of you that deserve to have your name here; Rich, Susan, Caroline, Lori, John, Lois, Doug… and many many many more I pray you know who you are. And trust me, if you think that I ever helped you in any small way; know that you too have helped me so very much.

So today, instead of you giving me a gift I'm here to give you a gift. A gift of thanks, because I reached the age of 49 so grateful to be alive and looking for more! So if you've read this far I give to you with all my heart and soul, my 'DASH'. I know my dash is made up of all of you, and I pray it will mean something to you forever. Please click here to see your gift. (Also you might not want to miss the old photo's below :))

With all my love and the brightest of blessings ~ Richard