Looking back at my life, it's amazing to me that more often than not, it's been the simple moments that not only paved my path but became the directional arrows at the crossroads of my journey. At the time when they were happening, these moments might have seemed like inconsequential, matter-of-fact life blips, but they turned out to be the ones that ended up determining so much of who I've become.

For example, if I were watching my life as a movie, when one of those moments occurred, I would have thought, “Well, nothing's happening here, so I'm gonna go take a leak, refill my third bucket of unlimited popcorn, and explain my theory to the candy guy that calling Milk Duds a “dud” is doing the candy a disservice and they should be called Milk Dudes.” But when I'd get back to the theater and sit down, I'd see people on the edge of their seats, laughing and crying at the same time, and the guy next to me just shaking his head and giving me his best “Bro, you freakin' missed it” face. I'm like, “What the hell is going on? What did I miss? How did this happen? So, that guy with the funky teeth and the thing with the thing was important in my life?”

Apparently, there's a reason your brain chooses to remember these times as opposed to many of the “more important ones.” As I get older and continually become more aware, it's so enjoyable to piece together the puzzle of my life and finally make sense of how all of the moments fit together so perfectly. Especially those moments that initially seemed like they were just a few random, leftover pieces thrown into the box. It's important to understand and accept that each and every moment matters.

I've never lived my life saying “what if.” I prefer to say “why not?” To me, “what if” is stamped with a negative label, because the majority of the time we use it to wonder “what if” a bad situation would have been better. All that does is stifle our growth and keep our mind in a place it was meant to leave behind. If you can realize and accept why certain things happen and why others don't, then you can grow from them, learn from them, and appreciate them. You can leave them behind and move on with a more positive mindset that accepts the fact that we get to where we are in life by the choices we make. We can't always control the circumstances of certain situations, but we can control how we choose to deal with those circumstances.

Who knows…if my brother decided to stay home that random autumn evening, he never would've seen Phil, I probably never would have gone to UNC, so I'd never have been in Richard Drefuss's office, I never would have had an “in” at MTV, and therefore, maybe I would have ended up back in Wampum, PA, working at the steel mill with a black eye and a broken nose. Hey JC, thanks for taking one, or should I say drinking one, for the team.

If there was only one thing that my foundation has taught me, it's this. Work hard, be kind to others, do what's right, follow your gut, and appreciate every moment, especially the small ones. Life might not always work out the way you want it to, but it's working out the way it's supposed to. So, be aware and choose wisely. Why not?