The Edge

Over the years... I have had the privilege of participating in the creation of what has been referenced as "The Dream Team" as I have traveled and taught well over a million people in various conferences and forums.  The Dream Team has consisted of Myself, Chad, Jason, and Scott.  Others that have come and gone, and by no means have these others been less significant, they however did not come nearly as often as the four of us that were ALWAYS together.

We have created together...  Invested together...  Shared together... Won and lost together... and grown into brothers...TOGETHER.

One of those brothers passed away recently and it has left such a vacancy in our world, and I wanted to write to express how I feel about this tragedy, and offer up my thoughts as this is MY forum where I have the privilege to share as I wish ;)

I was so shocked as I received the call that this had happened.  A fallen brother...middle of the night...of course I'll be there...no matter what!  I, and so many others, have made so many sacrifices in an outpouring of support for Jason Brian Leek and his family that survive him.

My heart goes out to his young 6 year old little girl.  Olivia..."Liv"...she and her Dad were such a pair!  So in love with each other as Fathers and daughters should be.  The heaviness I feel when I consider her little heart as she is trying to make sense out of the death of her Father at such a young age.  Yet, however heavy I feel,.. I consider how heavy Jason's soul feels as he considers the same and that it must be similar to what I feel, yet amplified by infinity! :(

Jason was one who would be the first to help in any way that he could.  He was technically inclined and would be the one that could fix what needed to be fixed,.. build what needed to be built,..  He would do it with a smile and often times anonymously.  Something I grew to really respect was his willingness to express gratitude on a frequent basis and show thanks.

As we all have our own personal struggles, so did Jason.  We all go to that "edge" and flirt with that edge.  I too, have had my dark moments when I have felt alone, lost, and very discouraged.  Those moments when everything feels like its being piled on top of me, and I can't see a way out.  We DO have choices in those moments.  Jason's death was a result of flirting with "The Edge" and his death was not intended and certainly unexpected (I believe even for him).



I believe we have all had these moments when we feel so out of control and when things have become so (seemingly) lost.  We look back on these moments and don't even recognize that person and the choices we may have made in a time of struggle and fear.  What I have learned from this tragic and terrible accident, is that nobody is above desperate struggle and strife.







However,...







in those moments,.. are there choices?  YES!  Yes, there are!  Yet, when those dark dark moments come, and I find myself on "The Edge",.. I now choose to think of my dear friend and brother Jason asking and beckoning me to come off of that ledge, and to come away from that edge... because unintended and tragic accidents happen when we come too close to the edge.



Life gets hard, and sometimes unbearable,..yet the fight is still worth fighting!  Those that we love (and they love us) still want us near!  Have the courage to accept Jason's invitation to stay a bit further away from that "edge",.. have even more courage to ask for a bit of help from someone you know.  STOP thinking they won't help or that they won't care.  They can't care until they know that you might need help.  Count the blessings you DO have...  "The seeds of sorrow cannot take root in a grateful heart."  Please, I beg you, to remember these words...that you DO have a choice in all circumstances, as to the state of mind you will choose.

I hope these thoughts are taken with the light of hope and the desire to let that flame within each of us burn!  That flame is in there!  It is real... and perhaps deserves some attention as it may have dimmed over recent time.



I am 100% sure that Jason would take that moment (when he left) back if he could!  Feel grateful that you and I still have that choice.  For me,..I choose hope, light, and life!  It is my hope that you do and will too!