A friend recently sent this to me saying that there had never been anything that described me more perfectly. I laughed agreed. But to understand this, you must first understand the definition of Wild. Or at least my definition. Most think that wild describes someone who parties, or drinks and does questionable things that they probably should not be doing in the first place. No, that is not wild, that is the definition of stupid.
To me, wild in this sense is living life on your own terms and not being concerned about what others think of you. God gave me of conscience, and therefor, if I have faith in Him, I have faith in the abilities he gave me and my sense of discernment. People who are confident in themselves do not seek the approval of others but instead obtain autonomy in their handling of life.
And I come by this attitude naturally, as both of my parents were quite revolutionary in their own way. My father was an electrical engineer and a rocket scientist. He designed ballistic missiles and their control systems, among other things. You can see many of the projects he worked on, such as Nike-Zeus, the Mercury Project, and Atlas, at the Smithsonian Space and Science Museum.
My father loved my mother and he loved children. But that is not what made him wild. What made him wild is that he helped raise children who where not his own. His first wife cheated and gifted him with three children by other men. When they divorced, even though he was Catholic, he refused to get the marriage annulled because he did not want to illegitimize those children. When he and my mother married, they had to do so in a different denomination because he protected those kids. And he paid child support for them, double the amount due sometimes, because he believed so much in adults and parents doing what is right for the child above everything else. And to the day he died, he never spoke ill of their mother to those kids. That is pretty wild even by today’s standards.
He lived by his word and if he shook on it, you could take it to the bank. His career and reputation were impeccable, for which he worked very hard and was extremely proud. He could make or break another engineer’s career by his word alone, something he took seriously. He felt the weight of that responsibility, respected it and never abused it.
My mother left her small Tennessee town, joined the Air Force and headed for Washington DC. She worked in the Pentagon as a Cryptologist, had the highest security clearance, and worked with the Joint Chiefs of Staff. She told me how terrified she was the first time she stepped into that room – a room women were not allowed to enter at the time, because this was in the early 60s. She talked about how when she sat down her knees were shaking under the table and she was glad that no one could see. She was the only woman in the room, with all of these extremely powerful men. She was there during the Bay of Pigs and the Cuban Missile Crisis, as well as other events. She worked with the likes of Lieutenant General Thomas K. McGehee, General Curtis Emerson LeMay, and General Isaac D. White. (If you don’t know who they are, look them up. They are impressive people in American History.) Again, completely wild.
My mother beat stage 4+ ovarian cancer. One time the doctors had determined that she was going to die, and put in her in the hospital to keep her comfortable. Four days later she told the doctors they could release her or she could walk out with out signing a single thing. Either way, she had had enough and was going home, very much alive. She told the doctors that God would determine when she would die, not them. She always fought for the underdog, and heaven help you if you hurt one of her kids. She argued like a lawyer with an exceptional knowledge of the law, and had a command of politics and American and World history like few I have ever seen. Yes, she was a wild Women.
And my parents together, took in 63 foster children. They worked with the worst of the worst when it came to the abuse. They were so good with the children that we were deemed a “Therapeutic Foster Home,” one of the only ones in the state at the time. And my mother helped change the laws concerning the treatment of foster children as well. My Dad never knew what, who, how how many children he might come home to after work. Or they could come in the middle of the night.
Growing up, sometimes the abusive parents would discover the location of their children and come after them. Sometimes the parents would chase us, shooting, while we children huddled down in the floor of the car. Many times we were followed and several times there were “hits” taken out on Mom, who was the one who would drive the children to and from court.
Once a parent found out where we lived and came for their child, which was rather scary. I remember Mom telling me about how once she and a social worker had to “kidnap” an 18 month-old out of a hospital because she had been sexually assaulted so badly that she nearly died. The court order had not come through, but they could not let her go back to the father who raped her. It took a few hours for that court order to come, but they kept that baby safe until it did. Again, very wild, even by the loose standards in todays world.
They were champions of children. They were fearless in their beliefs. They took risks and laughed at the odds. They moved mountain others couldn’t even climb. And I am their daughter.
I have my set of values and will fiercely follow them. I live under no one ‘s control, going by my God-given conscience, having faith in the mind He gave me. I will not bend to a demand I deem unworthy, nor waiver in my defense of those most at risk, but instead stand tall for that in which I believe. I answer to myself and God, everyone else can kiss my ass. I have taken many risks in my life, and they have all worked out in my favor. For this I am thankful.
Being wild in this sense keeps you living a life with few regrets. You learn not to compromise on your beliefs and you learn to have the courage of your convictions. Both concepts are wild and rare in this day and age of more is better, money is king and bigger is best. To those people; I say take a seat and let the wild ones show you how it’s is done.
Life is short. Be wild.
https://obituaries.valdostadailytimes.com/obituary/geneva-genny-burch-807880761
https://obituaries.valdostadailytimes.com/obituary/james-jim-burch-886848352
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