Gonna take some time to process all this, Mozza. But the short response is: thank you. This was hard to read, but I needed to hear it.
Ironically, I was drafting a post that was all about how I am an awful DBer and need to get off my high horse. I was listing all the ways in which I have failed at DBing. So, your words came at the right time because I am ready to hear them and ready to be unstuck.
And perhaps someone else will post a kind word or two, because I can certainly use that right about now as well.