Today I was happily taking the first day of vacation in a long time. Close to mid-morning the phone rings and I hear my wife quietly sobbing while speaking to my son, who is a junior this year. She tells me that the students at his school were just told of a fellow classmate who took his own life yesterday.
Perspective is a clarifying lens.
The issues I had been contemplating related to professional projects, strained relationships, and irritating work matters all become so trivial when seen through this filter. What I thought to be of consequence has become nearly offensive when compared to the grief this family is now suffering. I wrote "IT IS YOUR ATTITUDE" to help discern the meaningful from the trivial. I am very clear again. Love your family, love your neighbor and love yourself.
My father, Gerardo "Jerry" Lobo (second from left), 14 months after his arrival in Amsterdam, NY. He was 22 in April of 1965, having left his wife and two sons in the care of her parents in Costa Rica. Within 18 months of his arrival in the US he reunited his family. He had his own apartment, his own car, and was 3rd shift supervisor at Adirondack Mills. Hundreds of Costa Ricans followed my father to Amsterdam and then to Lincolnton, NC where he raised his five children. He passed away at the age of 52 in 1994. The NC-based Latino Diamante Awards recognized him for LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT in 2003 for his untiring assistance in helping Latinos achieve the American Dream. The Jerry Lobo Scholarship Fund, domiciled at Belmont Abbey College in the Charlotte area, assists young people of Hispanic lineage attain higher education. My father believed that education, coupled with ethics and perseverance, produced success. He remains a great example of the potential we each hold within ourselves. 
