peter
“My son was due at the time so I asked a friend who had a four-year-old son: “What is it like to have a son?” He was telling me all these amazing things like your son will think of you as a hero, he will look up to you and listen to you in awe. He said, I went to get my blood taken last week and my son jumped in the way of the nurse trying to protect me saying “That’s my dad, don’t touch him!” I thought that was amazing! Two weeks later, I’m sitting in a funeral home with his son. His father had OD’d. At the time, I was still part of a criminal gang. I’ve done stuff I shouldn’t have and I was just sitting there thinking, ‘what the fuck am I doing? Why am I still doing this?: This little fella doesn’t want any money, all he wants is his dad and to be loved. He wants the same things I didn’t have when I was growing up. You can bring your kid to the park or the beach and it’s a huge adventure! They don’t need money to have the best day of their lives. To say that you’re doing this for your family is bollocks. And really, you are just being selfish. You need to admit why you are really doing it. It’s because you are afraid. I decided there and then, that I am going to change for my kids. Last year, I went to see a friend doing an Ironman in Barcelona because I wanted to be around people who had goals in their lives. I felt so inspired by seeing my friend crossing the finish line that I went home and signed up for the next Ironman. I couldn’t even swim and I’ve never been on a TT bike before but I saw the path to change! I wanted to change the next generation and prove to myself that I can do this! I started to train really hand and six-months-later I lined up for an Ironman in Holland. I remember standing on this canal with all these people trying to prove something. I remember taking a big breath and feeling amazing. I hadn’t even started the race but I felt like I already won! I won my life back! I knew because I was out of everything by then. I was done! People asked me: Come on, you can make easy money! and I said no each and every time. I have better things to do now! I have to be a hero for my children!”
Humans of Dublin wants to wish good luck to everyone participating in the IRONMAN 70.3 in Dun Laoghaire this Sunday.