One Last Story, but Not About Me

Once upon a time in a far off land, there lived a Wise Old Man.  People would gather around him in the town square to ask him questions, to learn from his wisdom. 

The Prince of the land grew jealous of the Wise Old Man's popularity.  One day he told his aide that he had come up with a plan to discredit the Wise Old Man. The Prince would go down to the town square holding a bird in his enclosed hand.  He would ask the Wise Old Man whether what he held in his hand was alive or dead.  If the Wise Old Man said it was alive, the Prince would crush it and let it fall to the ground.  If the Wise Old Man said that it was dead, the Prince would release it into the air to fly away.  Either way, the Wise Old Man would be discredited.

The next day, the Prince went to the town square and amidst the crowd asked the Wise Old Man, "That which I hold in my hand, is it alive or is it dead?"  After pondering the question a moment, the Wise Old Man replied, "What you hold in your hand is what you make it."

What you hold in your hands is your future.  It will be what you make it.  I wish you success.

Conclusion:

I have not told you all this to impress you with my credentials. I have shared this with you to show you that I am on the same path of discovery as you are. I learn, I falter, I get up, grow more, and move forward.

As I said earlier, I am not perfect, nor has my life been “perfect” in terms of being without difficulties. But it HAS been perfect in uniquely preparing me to serve you as your State Representative in Lansing.

Thanks so much for reading this far.