I AM Surviving My Serengeti, Because I Have What It Takes….
I have never looked at my life through the lenses of nature. Being a deeply spiritual man, I have always viewed the various facets of my life as nothing more than a series of events designed, if you will, to draw me closer to God, to drive out of my character those traits that were not conducive to living a wholesome life, and to instill in me the traits that would allow me to be a blessing to others.
I have always been aware, however, that many lessons of life could be drawn from nature. Ants are industrious, flowers do no work and yet they thrive and grow, just to name a few. So I began reading the first two chapters of Stefan Swanepoel’s Surviving Your Serengeti with a knowledge that there would definitely be insights into my life that I had not previously considered, or even encountered, in reading anything else, including the Bible.
As I look back over the landscape of my business life – going on four years as a real estate agent, having entered the market right when the real estate landscape was shifting into almost desert-like conditions, I realize that there are a few good reasons why I should have failed and dropped out of the business - not many closings within the last three years, paying all expenses out of pocket – and yet, here I am still moving forward, and working toward making my own success this year, thanks in no small part to my broker and fellow agents, who have encouraged and supported me, given me sound advice and taught me a few things along the way. Coupled with the landscape of my personal life – working a full time job as a teacher, dealing with a chronically ill grandparent and her issues, finishing grad school and coping with being separated from my wife and children, all while she is still dealing with a health crisis of her own, while dealing with my own health issues, and facing foreclosure and a seriously busted house to boot, and it is a wonder to myself that I am still sane and functional, let alone managing to hold on to my business as a real estate agent. Yet again, I am actually doing well, given the circumstances. To be able to work and live through all of these changes and challenges takes strength of will and purpose that defies all logic and comprehension.
The unwavering tenacity that has served me so well in these past few years has, in retrospect, always been there. When I look back over my life, I can clearly see the cyclical nature of the storms of life that have transpired in the short 37 years that I have been living on this earth. Seeing my father abuse my mother, living through the necessary divorce, being raised by one parent, being on welfare, being in multiple car accidents, not having a father figure in my life, yet excelling in school, not getting caught out in typical juvenile behavior under such circumstances, graduating college and moving back home penniless, with no job prospects, yet moving forward and attaining my teaching certification and landing a job as a teacher – all that and more than time or space will permit me to express – and the metaphor of the Serengeti that Swanepoel describes in the first two chapters of Surviving Your Serengeti was one to which I could easily relate. I read the two chapters, fascinated with how apt the observations of Zachariah were, not only for the natural habitat which he had been studying for the major portion of his life, but also for the lives of Sean, Ashley, and my own.
Now that I had finally downloaded the preview and 
read the chapters, the only thing left was for me to take the quiz and see what type of animal I am. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I wasn’t surprised to learn that I am a wildebeest. Most fitting, I think, considering that I have stubbornly endured, both in my personal and business life, many challenges to my very survival. I definitely have what it takes to succeed in this business…I have survived, and will continue to survive my Serengeti, both professionally and personally, because I do have what it takes…
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