It's Never Too Late To Be What You Might Have Been

I watched a video last night which has been making the rounds on youtube.com about a man with a golden voice - Ted Williams, a homeless man (or vagrant as one website deemed him) who panhandled for money in exchange for a vocal display of his gift.

Apparently, a reporter from a Columbus, Ohio newspaper heard this man's voice and now Mr. Williams is all over the news, all over the radio, and job offers and offers of a residence are pouring in.

When I heard THAT voice come out of his mouth, it evoked the same reaction when I first saw Clay Aiken on American Idol and Susan Boyle.

At first glance, you want to dismiss these people for their ordinary looks, frumpy dress, or whatever it is that causes people to go "yah, right."

Who are we to judge by outward appearances? But human natures succumbs to that - judging all the way to the grave.

For whatever the reasons Ted Williams (I LOVE his name) ended up homeless and penniless, he may now have a second lease on life. Why Susan Boyle had been hidden from the world for so long is perhaps a matter of mitigating circumstances - she just could not put herself in the right place at the right time for someone to hear that she, too, had an amazing voice. And look what happened - she rocketed to stardom.

Granted, Clay Aiken's ride to superstardom was short lived but the fact remains he will always have that amazing voice and I believe now he is a father. How amazing will it be when his children hear their dad sing to them?

Many of us are born with gifts. Some of us grab that gift and run as fast as they can and find the niche in this world in which they were meant to be a part and share that gift. Others have no idea what to do with their gift and live a life of mediocrity simply because they were never given the encouragement nor the tools with which to share their gift. Parents can be a damning influence ("you'll never amount to anything even if you are a genius or you can sing or play guitar or piano or paint ..." you get the picture).

But then there are those of us who let life pass by and never utilize our gift to its absolute fullest until something knocks us off our rails and we stand back and realize that our gift - whatever it may be - is our ticket to a new ride to a better life.

Ted Williams is going to get that chance.

Susan Boyle got the chance.

And then of course there's me.

And the thought that crosses my mind right now is yes, it's never too late to be what you might have been.