Remember lying on the grass in your front yard and watching the stars? Your best friend was beside you and neither one of you uttered a word. Then a meteor flashed across the sky and both of you got excited and pointed to the sky. Our lives are like a flashing meteorite. Often the moments go unnoticed, but we do manage to brighten and touch the lives of those around us. Although we are not all famous or well-known, our stories are important. Each of us has a life in time. These are a series of short stories about my life. In the past I have heard a comparison I'm sure you have heard before, so let me ask you again. Who won the Super Bowl last year? Who won the Indy 500? Who won the last game of the World Series? Who were the Best Actor and Actress at the last Academy Awards? You might remember one but you probably don't know the others. Now ask yourself these questions. Do you remember the names of some of your teachers? What teacher helped you in high school? What valuable lessons did your mother and father teach you? And who was your best friend? They may not be famous but they brightened your life the same as that flashing meteorite. I believe life has been an adventure and that we learn from all the things that have happened to us. The one thing I try to do is look at things in a humorous way. As a child I was called Tiger because I was always into things. I thought I was just curious. As a teenager the death of my father weighed heavy on me. We began to move around. I became angry; a "Rebel," as some of my close friends called me. I had conflicts with religion. When my children were four and six I became a single parent. I learned a lot from them. .Most of the stories, I hope, will keep you laughing. There are some that are sad, but that is life. And that is what A Life in Time is all about.
About the Author: The author, Joe Barfield, has led an interesting life, scuba diving, racing cars with his son Beaux Barfield, lifting weights and playing a variety of sports. He met his wife Lucia in Cali, Colombia while on a trip. One time she took him on a trip in the mountains of Colombia and at one point they thought they had entered a guerrilla camp and he would be kidnapped. It turned out to be a group of the Colombian military looking for kidnappers. He spent a few days with them and even has a picture of him holding a 50 caliber machine gun with one of the Colombian soldiers. Showing his tenacity, once he was determined to win a Halloween contest and went as far as making an eight-foot monster with moving fingers. He won the contest. For him racing has always been an exciting endeavor, winning his very first race and two years later winning his first professional race at Sebring. His son went on to be Race Director for IndyCar. Barfield said there were as many adventures off the track as there were on. A quote from Jim Fitzgerald sums it all up, "When you do it and do it right it is the greatest turn on in the world.