Life: a2d

By Ernesto Ramos

This book is a story of life and what we share that makes us all the same, yet allows us to be unique individuals. It offers inspirational guidance and knowledge for the reader while serving as a very personal gift from a father to his son. The personal stories we experience are all different, yet the reader can completely connect to the highs and lows throughout Life: a2d.

You're probably asking, "Who are you?" and, "What makes your life interesting enough to write and read about?"
Who I am isn't important...
It's what I've learned about what we all have in common - life, life's experiences and what we take from those experiences - that makes it worth the read.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ernesto Ramos
• Release date: May 18, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311629227

Book preview

Life: a2d

Copyright 2014 Ernesto Ramos

Published by Ernesto Ramos at Smashwords

Smashwords Edition License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please return to Smashwords.com or your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contents

Preface

January 7teen Eighty3

Coaches

10 23

It Is What It Is

You

Sophomore Sixty

Need Wants, Want Needs

Emotional Attachments

Winning

Believe

Athlete

Passion

A Legend...

Afterword

About the Author

Connect with Ernesto Ramos

Preface

"Almost everybody that’s well-known gets tagged with a nickname." – Alan Alda

Nicknames are cool and can follow you for life. They can haunt or help you in immeasurable ways. There is the cruel nickname given on the playground or in the classroom by the school bully. Too often these stem from the awkward looks and characteristics we all seem to have at different points in our lives – from Bucktooth to Nasty Nate.

However, there are the times when one gets the blessing of a great nickname given by someone in his or her corner – a friend or family member. Often times, it’s just initials to simplify one’s birth name. Or maybe, it is something that just flows smoothly and fits perfectly. That’s where my story begins. More accurately – it’s where my life begins…

Desire – conscious impulse toward something that promises enjoyment or satisfaction in its attainment

Avrian Isai Ramos – A I R

It’s what I thought I’d always call him…

Then something happened – that something was actually a lot of things. It was his ability to throw, to kick, and to swing a bat; his ability to dribble and shoot. His desire to do – if that meant playing, running, talking, listening – to just do, and to do whatever that was, ALL DAY.

Some might call it being coachable but it was more than that. It went way beyond doing what was asked of him. It was an inner drive and desire that many spend years striving to find. A drive that some may eventually attain, but one that others sadly, never quite reach.

It might seem odd to use the word desire to describe someone at such a young age, but it is the perfect adjective to encompass his drive to become better. It didn’t matter how insignificant a task might appear to be, his approach to everything was personal perfection – all day, every day.

At the heart of it all, it is this desire that earned him the nickname that fits him like the glove he loves to wear –

a2d – Avi All Day

January 7teen Eighty3

"A smorgasbord of a person; born here, raised there; constantly adding pieces to achieve the whole." – E. Ramos

It was a fitting, foreshadowing event that started it all off; my grandfather driving my ready-to-deliver mother to the hospital. The time, influence and knowledge gained from my grandparents would catapult me down the road of life with the necessary mental strength to survive.

Eight pounds, seven ounces might not seem huge, but with my dome being responsible for most of that weight, cesarean section was the only option. It’s important to note the direction of that incision – vertical – because fourteen years later, a horizontal scar would be the result of my sister’s birth. Two different directions for two very different upbringings. Yet, it is at this one point where those two lines meet, two lives share similar characteristics, intelligence and much love.

My mother being sixteen years of age left us one option once we left the hospital – my grandparents’ trailer. It was set – I say set since a trailer can be moved (which we would eventually do) – on the bottom portion of A Mountain. Yes it was actually named A mountain, not because the townspeople weren’t original when giving names, but named after the small west Texas town, Alpine.

The trailer was found