For you, LB

There is an old Simon and Garfunkel song called "The Boxer" and whenever I hear a certain part of it, LB...I think of you. It goes:

In the clearing stands a boxer
And a fighter by his trade
And he carries the reminders
Of ev'ry glove that laid him down
Or cut him till he cried out
In his anger and his shame
"I am leaving, I am leaving"
But the fighter still remains.

That last line "But the fighter still remains" gets me right in the guts somehow.

Because this song tells of a man who has been jipped, RIPPED OFF, treated badly and stomped on by life for most of his days. I bet you understand that, LB, hey? This guy has had it really rough and is fed up. He is so beaten down, so upset and so fed up that he cries out "I am leaving!!!"

...but the fighter still remains.

And that's the bit I love most about you, LB. 

You're a fighter.

You've been through hell and you've come out the other side with your gloves up.

You have every right to want to rage and scream right now. You've been so jipped for so long and you've had your dreams broken and crushed so much and so often that it must feel like your heart is broken in a million pieces and you can't go on.

But you can.

Because you're strong. You've never quit before and you're not about to start now.

When all the dust from what's just happened with that job rejection clears, you'll still be there.

Fighting.

When you've gotten your strength back...start applying for new jobs.

Each application you send is you getting back on your feet. Each time you hit "apply' on a job online, that's you fighting back. That's you not letting the b*stards win.

You can do this, LB. I believe in you.

Go get 'em.