True Story: A Dose of Kurko Inspiration

Here is a lil happening, that happened just the other day.

So I’m at work, just doing the daily routine. A customer comes up, as they have done many times before, to tell me that he saw all my stuff online.

Now here is the deal with it all, I have been changing this customer’s oil for over a decade. Never really knew what it was that he did for a living, but this day I found out. Many times people report back to me about what their experience was while reading the books.

This guy brought all my emotions to the yard with what it was that interested him about the book in itself. It seemed this guy had been the ambulance driver that had on many accounts been the guy that showed up when my dad had fallen victim to a low blood sugar episode, due to his diabetes.

He let me know that he was the one that had responded to the call that night my dad died. Matter of fact, he had been on many calls to assist my father with his diabetes. Low or high blood sugars.

He stated that he knew how to handle my dad. That when the newbies came they would always load my father up and take him to the hospital. A place my father did not want to be. Right along with the doctors.

You must know now that my dad did not like doctors, nor hospitals. Bad combination for sure.

So I got to hear from the EMS tech, that he was sorry that it had taken them that long to respond to that 911 call. I got to crush his demon of sorrow by telling him that “Whatever happened that night, my father was gone just as soon as his eyes stared off into space.“

“It was no fault of yours,” I had told the man. Seemed as if a weight had been lifted off him for that fact, and that I had personally made it out of all that had happened back then.

He told me a story of showing up on a call to my father’s house. My father had locked himself in the hallway bathroom. With doing that the EMS entered first to find out why my father was such a brittle diabetic.

So hears the big deal, with all this the EMS guy is who saved me a great deal of heart ache that night. He let me know that he had told the police that night that it was my dads diabetes.

I’ll tell you now, my books: Loopholes and Circumstances go hand and hand with the issues we face on a daily basis. There are different levels of life. Not everyone faces the same issues. Some are worse than others -that’s what I know.

Makes me grateful for the life I’ve gotten to live. This all has fueled Kurko Inspires, to be an inspiration, a light in the darkness. Don’t let fear keep you from living. Stand tall just for the fact that your story could save someone’s life.

My book “Issues” is a call to action. A raw and unfiltered look into my life. If you haven’t read any of my books, then consider starting with Issues. Check out the book trailer below.

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Bundle Paul’s entire collection and save!

When I sit down to write, I take what has affected me and put it all into words in an effort to inspire men and women from all walks of life. I had no clue that sharing my story would have the impact that it has. It’s a fact that writing can and will set you free from issues that have kept you held captive as a prisoner of self-doubt and mental torment.

I have a God found love for humanity. I want those suffering from one issue or another to know that they can break the chains that hold them down. If you need someone to talk to, I’m here for you.

Paul Kurko
Buy Now
Connect with me!

Kurko Inspires: Celebrating 8 Years

We’re gearing up to celebrate our 8th Year Anniversary here at Kurko Inspires! Through my partnership with Eric Jones at TGIM Digital Publishing, I was able to debut my first book. Since then, there has been a lot go down for us all. Inspiration being the driving force. We started from scratch on December 1, 2016, with the publication of ISSUES! Which is my life story. A lot of readers do not know that the rough draft took only a week for me to put together.

A raw cut into my life’s happenings, the issues I faced, the resentments I held and the path of which all that took me down. I knew then the power of the book. I really did not have the money for the book cover then so we took a picture of the old me – looking at the new me. I didn’t like the cover, but at that time it was fine. THE STORY JUST HAD TO HIT THE STREETS.

On the cool, I knew that my story was something to read. But never in a million years did I think the life I had lived would inspire so many people. Bring hope and light into the darkness the way it has. One year later I dropped a book called Loopholes, and because of the way Issues impacted the world, Eric and I created Kurko Inspires, to be my helping hand. The website is a way to connect and guide people who are interested in my books to buy direct or easily access to my Amazon Author Page.

I chose to cover the second book with the infinity sign.  Loopholes was a book also shining the light on the journey from who I was and the transformation that took place to get me to where I am now. So, on Aug 26, 2017, I had two books out now. Both book covers were designed by my friend and publisher, Eric Jones. Here’s what the old covers looked like. They’ve since become collector’s editions.

It was not long before I was inspired to create yet another page turner called The Chronicles Of Paul. In this book you see divine intervention taking place time and time again. This book took a whopping two years to complete. I’d wrote three books and felt as if I were done.

On October 12, 2020, TGIM released The Chronicles Of Paul. The whole world was breathing through masks due to Covid. Since this was my third book, I wanted to make it special. Eric recommended that I pay a graphic designer to have the cover designed for this book. Eric had a point. Some people do judge a book by its cover, and I needed covers for all three books that truly reflected my stories inside those pages. Well, if I were going to pay to design one cover, I figured I’d pay to redesign the covers for my first two books as well. Here are the covers for all three books:

The hell I endured as a child into my early years, I felt it fit like peas and carrots. There was a time when I would’ve burnt the city to the ground and walked away in my gas mask. Fitting for the cover of Issues to say the least. I see people judge the cover when they see it, and “That’s OK!” The cover was not to be scary for my readers but depicts what life was like for me then.

Over the last 8 years, my readers have reached out to me letting me know what they got from my books and what they thought of them. I love connecting with my readers and I love each and every one of you. We’re just getting started here at Kurko Inspires.  

Okay. Love ya, bye.

Bundle Paul’s entire collection and save!

When I sit down to write, I take what has affected me and put it all into words in an effort to inspire men and women from all walks of life. I had no clue that sharing my story would have the impact that it has. It’s a fact that writing can and will set you free from issues that have kept you held captive as a prisoner of self-doubt and mental torment.

I have a God found love for humanity. I want those suffering from one issue or another to know that they can break the chains that hold them down. If you need someone to talk to, I’m here for you.

Paul Kurko
Buy Now
Connect with me!

Escaping The Chains

I never in a million years thought I’d write a book. Much less, become inspiring because I made it out of a life, that for many years, seemed as if I were living out a curse left unto me. That a book called Issues would break the chains that were holding me to the life I had fought hard to break free from. 

A life of dependence on drugs. Living with the abuse of drugs cursed with a negative outlook, for the fact, I’d lived my fair share of trauma. That at such a young age, seemed to fuel my bad behavior and criminal mind set, those chains are why my logo on Kurko Inspires contains a ghost. Springing free from the name KURKO INSPIRES. I say now, “That ghost represents the ghost of my past being set free from the inspiring side of me”! 

The ghost represents all the judgments and self-doubts. All the things that living as an addicted person faces after the fact they decide to try to clean it all up. The lifestyle of an addict leaves a person chained to all the mistakes, failures, riddled right along with shame and judgment from folks that had chosen a better way. 

“Walk a mile in my shoes.” I say to the people that wont give us a chance. The ones that talk down on my failure. Hey Ya’ll look, we all know you are better than us. We are our own worst critics. With that all said, I say it’s not easy to put the fires of the past out with everyone who suffered with you. Along for the ride through your pain and torment. 

A normal person can’t grasp the why of it all. I, for sure, can not tell your story or why it is that you have suffered. Only here to relate the fact that for many years I was on the lower end of living while death was just a heartbeat away. I’m no better than anyone. Nore will I try to be. I’ve just got to be the best version of me. 

That’s a goal I have carried out for the last 16 years. The stopping point for me was a child named Kash. Born unto my care at the age of 30. By a Woman who unconditionally loved, “ Paul Kurko” for the man she saw in me whom I had not known till that point. I burnt the past and all the bridges I had destroyed. 

The relationships that lay in a pile of ash, due to the mishandling of life on the installment plan. The fact that those around me resented me to the point they may never forgive. I burnt a lot of trust with a lot of folks and through my addiction to a life of living hell. With my decision I had made, for the sake of my son Kash, to pull myself out of the lifestyle of that addiction and all that was wrapped up in it.

He has heard of my struggle, knows of it but by no means feels it.  I carried my crucifix through this death wish, Living on the wild side. That sentence before this was straight out of the Motley Crue song, “Wild Side”. By God grace, and un-ending mercies I have made the decision to change my life for the better of my Family and kids, yes I said “Kids”! There is Kash, Kole and Jayton. 

Kash 16 years old
Kole 9 years old
All of us boys when younger

The funny part is that the only way Kash was going to be alright with a lil brother is if we let him name Kole. In my self-righteous head, I had justified naming Kash for the fact that I gave up a Harley Davidson to fund his arrival into this world. That arrival was very unusual, though the trials and tribulations showed God at every crisis. 

When writing Issues and then reading it, a healing process took place. I then could see on paper the things that were still to that day blocking the inspirations of my life. When in your head, you are able to sort thoughts, files of memories,  and emotionally driven feelings that come and go, leaving behind guilt and dismay. Even though they were just a fleeting glimpse, and then they dissappear on to the next thought, your mind goes.

Without  the time to capture what was really going on or what had conspired, then. When you put it on paper, you are able to analyze those things, feeling’s emotions and all. Giving yourself time to confront what has gone wrong. A layout that you can see. I found writing the book Issues. Gave me the ability to process the ever eluding feeling of why and when things had gone wrong. 

Even made me take a look into where I was wrong and the parts I played in it all. If i got lost in thoughts as I was trying to pick and choose what I’d keep and what to let go and let God. I could use the book and what I had written as a reference. By just turning the pages back. There’s where the healing could take place.

Just for the record, when writing the book Issues. I felt the power of what I was writing might bring insight to the fact, that the affected might prosper from the life I had lived, and the one that had left me at rock bottom with nowhere to go but up. Thankful am I that it all came out to be healing for me. Hope for the readers. without God, I could not have done it. Took me straight out of my comfort zone.

This book captures the readers. For me to be here on Earth as I am, became a very interesting story. Many times I didn’t think there was any way for me to make it. Here I am. The book Issues inspires people to look at things in a different light.

In my life I learned alot about, a little and a little about alot. There is most definitely God. The grace he has shown me is enough. The books are written to engage the readers and encourage a change, I’ve heard it reads like I’m in the room with you, telling the story of my life. My grammar, I use in some instances I do not correct. For the fact that my friends and family know it’s not AI.

I have shared my story to the point that many have reported back what they took away from the book, offering me an opportunity to showcase my life stories for the world to see, and with that I was able to create Kurko Inspires

Wow! What? Man, I feel like I’ve been quiet, just sharing my story everyday. Since I was young, this is where it’s taken me. I had my publisher Eric Jones who thought it would be a good book and a great Idea to publish ISSUES.

Thank you God he was right. I have heard back from people and got their feedback,

I’ve always enjoyed 😉 answering questions that arise while reading my books.

Eight  years I’ve been in the business of inspiring folks kurkoinspires.org  has been my helping hand to spread the stories. I’m on top of the world. Thank you to the readers who pushed me, inspired me, and supported me through this journey. Thank you! Dreams do come true. You can change once you admit to yourself there is a problem. I’m a living testament. My books are my testimony to the world of just how much God does behind the scenes for us that choose to believe. I for sure could not have done all this on my own.  Thanks to you all.

What Can I Say?

Find what makes you happy and keep at it. Now let me explain, so no one gets confused. There is temporary happiness, and money brings that drugs can deliver it by making you numb to all the hidden emotions. Things of the world will deliver this to some extent. Some of us are damaged and can not tell the difference between the two.

I state it that way, for the fact that I was one who tried to put a lid on pandora’s box, keeping the lid on it, by drowning out all the negative emotions with drug abuse. In my own eyes, I was the worst of the worst. Living with a death wish. That’s for sure what I was living.

Blessed by God’s grace, I did not die in this time, nore get stuck with never coming back to reality. I speak of that as well. This is for the fact that I love some folks and also know a few who were running from the harsh reality of pain and lived an unhealthy lifestyle to boot.

Childhood trauma had happened to them at a young age. The great generational curse, the false teachings of parents dammaged along the way. In all my books, I promote happiness and hope, and the point there is really a better way of life out there for us all. If you were like me struggling to do life on life’s terms.

Let’s jump back to the happiness I tell you to find. Once you do, just keep at it. God’s got ya, even when you don’t think he cares. “He does help us who have been afflicted.” It’s not what happened, but how you react to those circumstances.

1st, you have got to forgive yourself for what part you played in becoming who you have been. God helps us with this. I was a great pile of poop at one time. “Not any more!” I made the concisous decision to change my view of the world I had created due to lifes struggles, the feelings of being  kidnapped from my loving mother. Her death at my young age.

My point in all this is when you’re truly happy. The last thing you want to do is take a chance to destroy it. When you’re happy, you no longer want. self-destruction, or all the negative things that come with that lifestyle.

This requires change. Yes, it’s not for everyone. They become lifers. But if there is a chance that you’re tired of getting what you have always gotten. To the point that you want something different, then make the next best choice pertaining to what you do next to crawl out of that hole you have been in.

Make the amends. You need to apologize when necessary. Own the truth of whatever ever plagues you. Find what makes you happy and keep at it. So hold yourself to a higher standard than what you have.

I’m by no means perfect in all I do. Sure do though know the difference. Just because I’m happy now does by no means mean I don’t get angry. I still fight with myself at times. Don’t think drugs will save you, In the end, they only prolonged the misery.

Paul W. Kurko

The Name Change.

If you had to change your name, what would your new name be?

So listin if I had a choice my name would have been Paul James Kurko. I actually lived under an alias of 26 years. I had no idea my name was  not my real name. I had a drivers license and social security card under Paul William Kurko Jr.

I had to have a copy  of my birth certificate for something. So I went to the court house to obtain one. I go in and talk with the clerk. Tell her my name showing her my ID. She said to give her a second.

She was in the records room for a few minutes and then said Sir, You don’t exist under the name you provided. She then asked who my parents were. I gave their info. She calls out from the room that my legal name was Paul Junior Kurko.

At this time, I’m starting to freak out a bit. It’s not even how you all may think. Let me give you a backdrop on me. I went to prison at a young age and learned how to tattoo. Tattoed my initials on my left wrist. In side of a black band. Reading PWKJ.

I did it with a pick. One poke at a time. Inside the band, as I was tattooing. I learned how to line and shade. And finished with my initials. It was a great learning exs.   perience.

I said to the clerk, “What can I do about all this?” She said give me $26.00, and I’ll change your name to Paul William Kurko Jr. So I did, and well, the Judge signed off on it. And all I have to say is now I match.

My grandmother said my mom had named me wrong. So she fixed it. At least  made it how she thought it should be.

Kurko Inspires: Proud Supporter of the Paschal High School Football Team

So, let me just start this off with the fact that I’ve been in the business of inspiring folks officially since 2017.  I’m personally inspired by the little things. Every now and then, someone asks me if I’d like to sponsor a cause. I don’t answer robot calls or spam -if I can help it. But there is always one that you feel you have to answer. I am the manager of Oasis in Stephenville, Texas, where we service vehicles. That’s where I work full time. The inspiration starts here.

I am working, and the phone rings. I’d really hate to answer and its a robot call that tells me ” …please wait to be connected”. Whew! Its not. On the other end of the phone was a lady talking about supporting the Paschal High School Football team in Fort Worth. She and I got to chatting it up about the books I’ve written about my life and all the happenings involved. Both good and bad. She was very down to earth. Anyhow, I’m glad I answered the phone for her. She shared inspiration with me. She asked me what it was that Kurko Inspires does as a business. My business model is simple: Using my life story as the foundation for Kurko Inspires, I write and promote content that encourages, uplift and inspire people from all walks of life. It’s the pain of addiction, incarceration and despair that brings us together. In some way or another, most all of us have been touched by it.

So here is my deal about the phone call. By the end of it, I could not wait to support this football team! To me, just to see the team running across the football field, and knowing that Kurko Inspires is a proud supporter is yet another milestone in the inspirational life of Paul Kurko. By the way, just in case a parent, student, educator, coach or someone reading this needs to hear it: hold on. Life gets better. Look for ways to help somebody else every chance you get. One way to do that is as easy as grocery shopping. That’s right. Click here to support Paschal High School the next time you go to the grocery store. Most of all, don’t ever forget that ole Paul is here if you ever need somebody to talk to.

Bundle Paul’s entire collection and save!

When I sit down to write, I take what has affected me and put it all into words in an effort to inspire men and women from all walks of life. I had no clue that sharing my story would have the impact that it has. It’s a fact that writing can and will set you free from issues that have kept you held captive as a prisoner of self-doubt and mental torment.

I have a God found love for humanity. I want those suffering from one issue or another to know that they can break the chains that hold them down. If you need someone to talk to, I’m here for you.

Paul Kurko
Buy Now
Connect with me!

Alive July 1978

1978 Roadglide 75th Anniversary  Passed Down To Me.

            

Share what you know about the year you were born.

As for the research I’ve done over my 45 years here. I am glad to tell ya. It was a good year to drop off into the world 🌎. I know I love the music 🎶.  All the old hot 🔥 rods, the freedom.

On the cool, I was born in a 1978 Nova. It was my grandmothers car. My Mom and Dad were racing time, and Mom had gone into labor. My Dad and she were headed up to the emergency ramp of Harris Methodist Hospital of Fort Worth.

I was born a blue baby. With the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck. In the front seat of that 1978 Chevrolet Nova. My father’s car was 1970 Chevrolet  Chevell SS. His car ate gas for a living and had a big block 454. I’d have been born on the highway  or at a gas ⛽️ station. That is if he had taken his car.

My chances of surviving would have been drastically affected. So, back to the point in me writing this. There is a movie  out there called Talladega Nights with the race car driver named Ricky Bobby.

I can for sure drive a car. I inherited a belt buckle from 1978. 75th Anniversary Harley Davison. From my father when he passed away in 2002.

A lot of my cars have been from the 70s. The 1978 Potiac Trans Am, “It’s one of my favorites!” I had the 76 79, but have yet to get the 78. Hey, I’m still breathing, so you never know. I am dyslexic, to the point I have a 1987 Camaro Z28 I’ve built.

From 1978 till now, I have for sure lived a real life. Drive like the Dukes Of Hazard. I’ve been in it, through it, under it, climbed up it. To be sitting with a smile on top of it most days.

1978 was when I was born, so I for sure say it was an awesome year. For all I had to learn and go through, it has been so worth it. I have books 📚  written about this life to inspire others.

There is nothing special about me except I have an interesting sequence of circumstances.

I’ve been around since 1978. I’ve been working on motors since I was 12. Mechanic as I grew older. Thank God I made it here in 19 and 78.

At First In Life.

When I was young, I knew the characters  of my friends were not perfect. That’s where I fit in. I had made a lot of bad judgement calls on my character.

With all that said, there was no judgment  passed between us. Over time, I have become a people reader. My flaws against my character have changed.

At 18, I started the revolving door of incarceration. In the Texas prison system, I learned quickly how to read folks. At the age of 24 and 3 trips later. I’ll say I can tell the character of people just by talking with them and watching.

At the age of 45, I’ve learned not to judge people. So now, if I’m around my dogs, they will do the judging. With all the experience I have, with all the people I’ve been around, I can tell you whether or not their intentions are good or bad.

I can walk into a room and tell ya who is a problem and who is a problem solver. So, in my defense, I’m not too bad at it.

Eyes On Me.

Have you ever performed on stage or given a speech?

When I’m in front of an audience. There are eyes watching my every move. Two per person usually. For a crowd of fifty, there are a hundred eyeballs following my every move. Two pairs in this picture 📸. I like a small crowd, more personal!

When The Time Comes

When the time comes, be ready. There is truth in the fact that not everyone is your friend. As time passes, you find your strength to stay away from people places and things. Rest assured, there will come a day.

When that day comes, you will know it. There will be someone from your past who will surely without thinking, offer you some of whatever it was you left behind. That for many is where it all can fall apart.

There is a difference in staying out of that lifestyle and having it slap you in the face. Your old buddies still do what they have been doing, chances are they will not stop the life they have become accustomed to. Pray for them anyway.

In your homeboys defense, they knew a different person back then. They still see ya as that person. The time will come that you are offered to get high on whatever. If the two of you or the many had good times together. The choices become that much harder.

If you can pass up their offer, you will feel like you gained power over the addiction. This is as dangerous as looking down a barrel of a loaded gun. I’ve lost a lot of friends in my life to prisons and drugs. One drug or another, when they die its all the same.

So, back to what I was saying. ” When the day is over and all is well. You will remember the feeling that swept over you. When buddy drops the bag. Right! That feeling will keep you subconsciously thinking about the incident for weeks to come.

This is like a slippery slope. Many that have some time clean, struggle not to think about the offer to silently ruin their lives. One bad day can cause someone to revert back from where they came from.

When the time comes, be ready! After time, the choice becomes easier to make. On the cool, let’s say you and your Old Buddy just went a head and had a one nighter. There is a cloud of darkness that follows. Guilt and shame to be had.

I speak from experience 15 years. Still got my guard up. Really, I keep in thought how dumb I was to waste the time I did getting high. The hell it caused me is programmed to be thought of first. In the event I’m put on the spot.

Still happens in passing. People who once knew you. Most of the time, Old Pals don’t know what you’ve been up to. I know I’ve seen it over and over. People just throw it down and pick it up. I mean years clean.

Most of my friends are from that time in my life. They all quit to. Some had a harder bout with it than others. I had a fight of a lifetime when I quit in 2008.

My first kid came into the world unexpectedly. In a time when life was in the gutter. I had to land abruptly and become responsible overnight.