So, I gotta tell you, it's a beautiful Saturday around here...

I'm telling you, I got up today, and my job was cool enough to let me borrow the backpack blower. I mean, we're talking about an industrial backpack blower—top of the line, gracious enough to let me borrow it. Got up early this morning, took my old self outside, and got to work, cleaning house. You know what I mean? Just taking care of the yard, doing things right for the neighborhood, that kind of thing. So I'm out there grinding, getting it done, having a beautiful day.

My daughter comes out to help, and Tracy comes out to help too. We’re just getting it rocked out. And hey, man, we had fresh cinnamon rolls. It was Mom and Dad's anniversary, so they came over. That was nice; we had a good time talking, heard some funny stories. It was pretty cool, and nice to see her dad open up, to tell you the truth. Made me feel good. He’s always good to me, but it was nice, you know? Like riding the tide. You get in the tide, and you ride it, you know? And we're riding the tide today. It was nice, really nice to go with the flow with them.

So anyway, we’re having a real good day—just a good day, you know? A real good, good, huge vibe of a good day. And I’m telling you this story because I want everyone to know that when you're having a really good day, when you're rocking and feeling the vibe of your situation or your surroundings, you know, don’t let anyone—whether you call them haters or, as I sometimes say, demons in human form—come in and try to antagonize you, hurt you, or destroy the fabric of the universe that you’re working within that day. I’m telling you this story to say, don’t let it happen to you, because, man, it was a great day.

We saw people I work with, people I’ve known from the past. It was nice to talk with them, just a warm day with a lot to grow from. So we get home, we’re chilling, and my daughter's inside eating candy like there’s no tomorrow. We’re all kind of tired, but I decided I want to go feed the animals, like I’ve mentioned before. So I'm out there feeding the birds, putting out food for the deer, setting things up for the crows and blue jays, and creating little areas for the squirrels. My dog Mac—I love him to death, but he's half wolf, half husky with some German shepherd in him—he’ll go after those squirrels, and I always feel bad when he gets one. I mean, I understand it’s his nature, but still, I feel bad.

But anyway, I gotta tell you something that almost ruined my day, and I'm not gonna let it. This happens to everybody sometimes. Somebody just comes in out of nowhere and tries to mess with you. So this is my way of saying: don’t let it get you. I didn’t let it get me today, and it actually made me feel better in the end because I stood my ground.

So, I’m out there feeding the deer, and I see this family coming down the hill, walking down our road. It was beautiful; I even acknowledged it to myself, like, "Nice family." Then I went about my business, you know, whatever. All of a sudden, I hear, "Hey, Marc." And I look up, and there’s this gentleman, who people say a lot about, supposedly a role model. So it was nice for him to acknowledge me, and I acknowledged him back. We’ve always seemed to break pretty decent bread together, at least from my perspective.

We exchanged a few words, and then I went into the garage to put the corn back. Then I hear one of his grandkids say, "Hey, can we go look at that?" And he goes, "I don’t think so." I heard it, so I turned around and said, "Yeah, you guys come take a look."

What they wanted to see was this tree in my yard. It’s a decent size, and I’ve built a little village around it, one that means a lot to me. A couple of years ago, we had two big trees fall and destroy part of our house and both of our cars. We had to live in the front yard for a week. It was a tough experience, but it taught me resilience. So, in the years since, I’ve taken the fallen branches from storms and built a kind of teepee around this tree. It's a symbol to me of survival and honoring our history.

Inside that teepee, I’ve created a little village as a tribute to our town, its past, and my beliefs. I placed a cross, a sickle, and symbols representing faith, spirituality, and other religions. Angola has a deep history—it's a spiritual town, with many mysteries and layers of heritage people don’t often talk about. I’ve heard people whisper and judge me for it, but I try not to let it bother me. I just wanted something here that represents my love and respect for this town and my connection to it.

I even planted ivy and purple flowers around it. Purple has a lot of meaning for me, both in terms of family heritage and as a color that represents the shroud they used to wipe Jesus’s face. It’s all woven together with layers of meaning, something I’m really proud of.

So the kids are looking at it, and I’m feeling good. I put a lot of work into it, and it felt nice to see them take an interest. But then, I hear this grown man say, "That’s probably the scariest village you’ve ever seen in your life." I paused and looked at him, and it stung because I’ve shared with him and other respected folks in town what this little village means to me. To hear him say that felt disrespectful, to be honest. But instead of reacting, I just stood there quietly, keeping my thoughts to myself.

And it’s amazing how the universe works, because just then, one of his grandkids turned around and said, "No, it’s beautiful. It’s neat. It’s exciting." That moment meant so much to me. I smiled, went into the house, and later told my wife what had happened. Now I'm telling you.

I’m sharing this because, to everyone out there who’s trying to grow or get better—whether it’s addiction, bad choices, or just people treating you poorly—keep being yourself and don’t let the naysayers get to you. Those who try to bring you down will fall away on their own. I can’t imagine how that man felt when his grandchild corrected him. I wanted to go over and hug the kid, honestly.

But I’m proud of myself today. I did the right thing. I let the universe and God take care of it. That small moment isn’t just going to stick with me; I know it’ll stay with him too. So, stay unique, keep growing, and remember—haters think they’re perfect, but it’s just what they think.

Have a blessed day. Stay confident, and don’t let the haters bring you down. Peace.