Clarity, Chosen, Choose And Our Own Hall Of Fame

The dictionary meaning of the word chosen is one who is picked, selected or elected. We choose lots of things in our lifetime. We choose our mate, our spouse, our colleges, our clothing, our homes and many times the jobs we find after our schooling. We can choose our hobbies, our traveling experiences, our jewelry we wear, the food we eat and even the size we become from the foods we choose to eat or not eat.

When I was in high school, I had the dream to be a fashion model. I was slim enough to become one and one day, a popular department store put out a call for young teens to model in a show they were going to produce in the spring. I, along with hundreds from my high school dressed up in our finest and slimming clothing and went down to try out for this onetime event. I bought a wine colored two piece ladies’ suit dress and I thought I was a shoo-in to win. When I got there, I saw hundreds from other high schools and I knew that the choosing of ten would be a hard choice for the judges, because all the young teens looked very cool, as the current saying goes.

I did my thing as the other several hundred did and only one from my school and I remember her name was Mitzi won or was chosen. I did not feel too bad, because I had tried and trying is important and even if we do not win, we tried. However, right after that event, I started to work Saturday all day, Thursday and Monday nights at a department store called Stewarts. They asked me to model every Saturday before the store opened for their buyers to see how the clothing in each department should be presented to the public. I was ecstatic and here in front of me, I had been CHOSEN. It was a better job than the one time I had not been chosen for. I did this for a whole year, every Saturday and every Thursday right after I got there from my high school classes; all the chosen models had to come for a fitting of the clothes to be worn at the show the coming Saturday. It was a twofold event, fitting and then modeling. What a joy I had and I was so delighted, I had not gotten the above mentioned try-out. This was ten times more lucrative in prestige and ego, than that one would have been.

Often times, we do not get what we think we want or desire the first time. Something stops the first time event and then if we are lucky, a better time is there for us. We can apply this in our everyday life as to how we met our spouse, the house we bought may not have been the first one we liked and we missed out on it or sometimes, when we wish for children, something happens and we did not have the child then and months afterwards, we do get pregnant or even if we have to adopt a child, we are again ecstatic over our good fortune.

When we Baltimore Colts fans lost our beloved team many years ago in 1984, we had none for a long time and now for over sixteen years, we have our dear and wonderful Ravens. We waited and waited and finally it happened and we have been overwhelmed, happy, and supportive and our lives have been enhanced with this team. Art Modell brought us a team and for that all Baltimoreans and the state of Maryland honor him. To be chosen is most of the times a blessing and a happiness time.

Sometimes, to be chosen can be a long and sad time. When I was modeling at the department store on Saturdays, I at age almost 16 produced a fashion show for teens, obtaining the models, the clothing, and the modeling space and even recruited the audience. When I look back, I think wow, how did a teen do this? I was determined after not being CHOSEN the first time from the other department store, that I would do it myself. That I did with the help of another department store executive and the store was called Hecht’s which was in those days a small store. However, Hecht’s grew to be a monumental clothing and variety department store for decades. It only closed up here in the Maryland area a few years ago. So I chose them, someone chose me and someone else will choose somebody new for a new venture.

When a couple or a single person chooses to ballroom dance, then in my opinion, they have chosen a perfect outlet for accomplishing a social activity combined with a sporting exercise. They can choose to play tennis, to play golf, to swim, to go to an exercise facility. All of these things give momentum to their hearts, brain and social life. Choosing is important and the wrong choices sometimes in the workplace may cause us work related problems or financial woes. I chose to write for the Cockeysville Patch because the editor Nayana Davis was receptive to my article subject and she gave me the opportunity to express myself freely and in turn she has, I hope, enhanced her editorship of the online newspaper with a different topic than general news. She chose, I chose and together, we have an important chosen topic. She was intelligent in her perspective on this topic and clever to realize it. Thanks Nayana.

A niece of mine chose the medical school she wanted out of all the schools that accepted her. My son chose the law school out of many that accepted him. He then chose to be a certified public accountant. My husband chose to call me for a date. I chose to accept one. My mom chose my dad and here we are all now at this time.

To choose or be chosen is a method of life. My mother had a friend whose daughter was engaged to be married; one night she decided to become a nun instead of the marriage. She chose her religion over her boyfriend. Shakespeare said “My eyes have the right to your outward appearance. My heart has the right to love you and be loved by you.” So we have the right to choose anything we want and to go for the goal of obtaining what we want. Others may see it as unenviable, unacceptable or even unobtainable. We are the leaders of our thoughts and the pursuers of our dreams and to us go the results. Sometimes, these results do not come out the way we desire, other times they are more than we dreamed.

Even though, there are those that want to keep Art Modell out of the Hall of Fame, that does not mean he cannot be in there in our spirit for what he did for our city and state; after having been unable to get another franchise when ours was taken from us in the middle of the night in 1984 by someone who had the opportunity to do it on the sly. We waited and then Art came along and we were chosen. That was a delightful chosen moment and has remained with us for sixteen years. Thanks is too modest of a word.

Chosen is a double word in my vocabulary. Most chosen opportunities are mostly blessed ones. I have a friend who left his job as a restaurant manager and chose now to be a server/waiter. He did this out of necessity, because the manager job was consuming his extra hours, his time off and stress to his mind and body. He is happy doing what he does now without the responsibility of a managerial position. Some may say that he took a step down. He thinks he took a step up in the right direction for his mental being and for his physical life. Each one of us has to CHOOSE OR BE CHOSEN to enable us to live happily and securely.

We can all be in our own HALL OF FAME when we are satisfied, content and delighted with our life. Go for what you are smart enough to know what you want. It can be football events, shopping events, life events, children, marriage, homes, jobs, health and peace. Then you will have entered your own Hall Of Fame and no one can take it away from you ever. A friend of mine is in the position now to choose a diamond engagement ring for his girlfriend. He is choosing what he wants in color, carat and clarity as they say in the diamond buying world.

Color should be good, carat what he can afford for her and most of all clarity as to the clearness of the stone. Clarity in our lives means clearness, explicitness, intelligibility and the ability to see clearness in our life as to what we want.

So go into your own Hall Of Fame and know you deserve a position there because you earned it with your choosing everything you wanted right now.