{"id":3806,"date":"2018-01-25T02:47:15","date_gmt":"2018-01-25T02:47:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vinnyroc-com.jv562z9r-liquidwebsites.com\/?p=3806"},"modified":"2023-11-07T19:51:39","modified_gmt":"2023-11-07T19:51:39","slug":"hit-ground-running","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/2018\/01\/25\/hit-ground-running\/","title":{"rendered":"Hit the Ground Running"},"content":{"rendered":"

Each morning when I was a kid, I\u2019d lace up my sneakers and hit the ground running.<\/span><\/p>\n

My personal creed has always consisted of one goal: When I lace \u2018em up in the morning, I want to be excited and passionate about what I\u2019m doing every day.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s funny; I always knew it was a privilege even to have boots to lace up. It wasn\u2019t necessarily anything someone said to me, I just had an innate awareness of how lucky I was at a young age. I had a general concept that there were other people in the world who didn\u2019t have as much as I did, and I was genuinely appreciative of my blessings.<\/span><\/p>\n

For example, we\u2019d go to Mexico twice per year, and my mom would always give me some money to buy chiclets from kids on the street.<\/span><\/p>\n

But I didn\u2019t need any damn chiclets, and I knew it. So I\u2019d just give all the money to the kids and let them keep their inventory. I felt how lucky I was not <\/i>to be selling gum on the streets. Deeply <\/i>felt it. <\/span><\/p>\n

Whether you call it sympathy or empathy for others, I was born with it. I could look into other people\u2019s eyes and \u2026 feel<\/i>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Feel their pain. Their sadness. Their joy. Their hurt. <\/span><\/p>\n

I knew my mission in life was to help others. Somehow. Some way. <\/span><\/p>\n

But it didn\u2019t mean I wouldn\u2019t veer from that path \u2013 intentionally or not. <\/span><\/p>\n

**** <\/span><\/p>\n

Each morning when I was in high school and college, I\u2019d lace up my cleats and hit the ground running. <\/span><\/p>\n

Literally. <\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been an athlete all my life, and baseball was my passion. I loved every second of it. The smell of the grass, the history of the game and the camaraderie of my teammates. It\u2019s a special game. <\/span><\/p>\n

I loved baseball so much, if fact, that over time my focus shifted from others to myself. <\/span><\/p>\n

In a way, it kind of had to. The amount of work athletes put it \u2013 along with the time honing their craft \u2013 doesn\u2019t typically allow for altruism on a daily basis (or so I thought).<\/span><\/p>\n

I thought I was invincible. It wasn\u2019t until I became academically ineligible to play in college that reality slapped me across the face. <\/span><\/p>\n

What the hell are you doing? <\/i>I thought. You\u2019re 21, can\u2019t finish college, there is no plan to continue pursuing baseball, no income and you have a kid on the way. <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

At that point, the only solution I could think of was joining the military. <\/span><\/p>\n

**** <\/span><\/p>\n

Each morning when I was an Army Ranger, I\u2019d lace up my boots and hit the ground running. <\/span><\/p>\n

When I made the decision to serve, I essentially made up my mind that I was going to die in combat.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, I was 100-percent fine with that. <\/span><\/p>\n

Why? Well, if that happened, it would mean two things: <\/span><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. That I\u2019d no longer be a selfish prick.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. My daughter would benefit from the insurance, and I\u2019d be a hero. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    But a funny thing happened; I didn\u2019t die.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Not on my first deployment. Or my second. Or my third. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I truly thought my purpose was gone. Once again, I knew I was meant to help others, but at this point, I was out of ideas to fulfill that drive. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I kept searching for answers. Through working as a corrections officer to joining the border patrol. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I knew I was doing something good, but I still didn\u2019t feel <\/i>it. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I was looking outside of myself to justify my existence. <\/span><\/p>\n

    **** <\/span><\/p>\n

    Each morning when I get up to make a video, I put on my slippers and hit the ground running. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Slippers, by the way, are fucking AWESOME. <\/span><\/p>\n

    I\u2019m incredibly fortunate to be in a position now to help others who are struggling. That\u2019s what my mission is. Along with being a father and husband, it\u2019s my life\u2019s work. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Here\u2019s the thing: It doesn\u2019t matter what kind of fucking shoes you have or don\u2019t have. I don\u2019t care if it\u2019s sneakers, cleats, boots or slippers \u2013 lace \u2018em up, find your passion and stick with it. <\/span><\/p>\n

    There is no \u201cmold\u201d for your life; every single person is different. It\u2019s YOUR life! <\/span><\/p>\n

    I believe fear and worry are the only enemies of mankind; don\u2019t fear what other people think of you and certainly don\u2019t worry about following the path everyone else took. That\u2019s their path. Not yours. <\/span><\/p>\n

    There is nothing I\u2019m going through that other people aren\u2019t. Like you, I\u2019ve had countless \u201crock bottoms.\u201d I don\u2019t have all the answers. I\u2019m not perfect. But what I do have is an insatiable desire to do better. <\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

    Better than I was in college. Better than I was in the Army. <\/span><\/p>\n

    A better father. A better husband. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Shit, better than I was 15 minutes ago. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Ultimately, that\u2019s all we can ask of ourselves as men and women. <\/span><\/p>\n

    You\u2019re going fuck up; it\u2019s bound to happen from time to time. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Do better…<\/span><\/p>\n

    You\u2019ll say the wrong thing at the absolute wrong time. <\/span><\/p>\n

    Do better…<\/span><\/p>\n

    You\u2019ll choose not to help someone you are fully capable of helping.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Do better…<\/span><\/p>\n

    Just be yourself, man…<\/span><\/p>\n

    And when you lace up your boots, hit the ground running.<\/span><\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Each morning when I was a kid, I\u2019d lace up my sneakers and hit the ground running. My personal creed has always consisted of one goal: When I lace \u2018em up in the morning, I want to be excited and passionate about what I\u2019m doing every day. It\u2019s funny; I always knew it was a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3810,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/IMG_2025-1-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3806"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3806\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4844,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3806\/revisions\/4844"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vincentroccovargas.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}