A firefighter, a cop and a priest all walk into a bar. Sounds like the beginning of a great joke, right? Nah, that would be my Irish Catholic family walking into my Uncle Barney’s bar in New York.

All those New York City cops and firefighters, and of course, my beloved uncle, the priest taught me that, “Life is about stepping up.”

I find myself thinking about my boys and what I want to teach them not only in life, but in relationships because of my marital problems and impending divorce.

Life’s about stepping up.

It’s about helping a turtle across the street, about grabbing the groceries of an elderly person and helping them to their car, it’s about ringing the Salvation Army bell when you’d rather be home and under the lights, it’s about bringing a meal to someone who needs it.

Life’s about stepping up.

It’s about staying up all night with a friend who needs you or walking through the door while they’re alone and about to put their four legged best friend to sleep.

Life’s about stepping up.

It’s about walking back through the door when you’re so mad you want to leave. It’s about having the confidence to admit you’re wrong because the one you love means more than being right. It’s about loving someone unconditionally and being confident enough to feel their pain and celebrate their joy. It’s about loving yourself enough that you are able to see the ones you love for who they truly are.

Life’s about stepping up.

It’s about yelling I love you when you shouldn’t or cheering someone on when everyone else is silent. It’s about showing up in the lives of those you love…..about making a call, making a stop or providing an ear or guidance.

Life’s about stepping up.

It’s about picking God and your family above everything else and it’s about knowing that the friends you love like family are next in that line.

It’s about living with those priorities and the right accompanying qualities…….Selflessness, kindness, loyalty, honesty, generosity and responsibility that leave your heart and soul so well fed that you have properly protected your own four walls. In doing that it allows you to step out beyond those four walls with a much larger vision of the world and those that may need you.

Life is about stepping up.

A firefighter, a cop and a priest all walk into a bar.

After all, even those who step up full-time get thirsty once in a while.

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