Category: Uncategorized (Page 18 of 147)

In the most popular story ever told, a man was tortured, humiliated and eventually murdered in front of his family, friends and strangers – the whole town. Yet, in the last moments of his life, was able to look his killers in the eyes and forgive them. He wasn’t even dead yet and he was already able to pardon them for what they were doing and for what would eventually be done.

If that doesn’t put things into perspective, I’m not sure what will.

I know I certainly have a ways to go.

I’ll probably reconsider getting upset the next time someone cuts me off in traffic next time.

I said ‘probably.’

When my birthday rolls around I do my best to look at it – rather than celebrating a birthday, which is another year on this earth – but an opportunity to be grateful for everything I have around me.

I’m able to break it down into digestible, individual acts and/or people that make my life so wonderful. In doing so, I feel like I’m being showered with gifts and Love. beyond my imagination.

There’s no doubt we must acknowledge how many years we’ve been fortunate enough to walk this journey called life, but let’s keep it in perspective and focus on what makes this time special; the Loved ones we are surrounded by and get to share this unique experience.

Leave it to Seth Godin’s blog “Holding On For Dear Life” to hit the nail on the head once again with where my head is at right now and then delivering the perfect remedy to eloquently sum it all up.

As he said, we tend to take the meaning of “holding on for dear life” as an exercise to display our sheer will and physical strength – hanging on to the edge of a cliff so as not to plummet to our death.

When what we really need to do is to let go in order to live our lives fully.

Let go of our old ideas. Letting go of our fears. Let go of our resentment towards ourselves and others. Letting go of the stories and excuses we tell ourselves over and over. Letting go of our old selves in order to embrace a new version of ourselves – even though we’re not sure who that person is.

In letting go, we decide to move forward into the unknown where anything can be the gateway to everything.

I’ve always been mystified and intrigued by the person with the “cool” attitude. I don’t come around them often, but when I do, I’m bewildered. Not “cool” in the sense of, “hey look at me,” or someone who’s popular because they’re “it” at the moment. But, more like this; if you made direct eye contact with her/him from across the room at a party, she would unabashedly meet your gaze and with unconditional Love peer deep within you as if she has a secret within her in which she knows everything is always going to work out in her favor and she wants to share that secret with you.

It’s not arrogance or false confidence. As this person has discarded anything close to what we call the ego. This is evident by her softened countenance and warm smile.

When you walk up to this person to speak with them, there is an ease with which they reply your questions and more times than not they want to know more about you than most people you’ve met. They’re pleasant and kind. They encourage you in what you’re doing and offer help, but not frivolous advice. They speak at a pace that’s similar to a bed time story you heard as a child. It’s warm. Delightful. Safe.

These are the treasures I long to run with and fill my days. Maybe – just maybe, one day I can be one of those treasured people.

Why is it we tend to look for the negative in each and every situation?

Why do we only call out the flaws in others, rather than their strengths’ or other positive attributes?

Why do we only notice our own faults and not what we love about ourselves?

I’m not sure. But, I do it often and we don’t need to continue. We can choose to see the success, the growth and how far we’ve come if we’re want.

Why not? Let’s highlight the positives, the break-throughs, the effort and the minor successes. Let’s find the diamonds in the rough and lessons learned in the process.

We all make mistakes. We all have come short at one point and most likely will again and again.

But, maybe we see the world around us as a glass of water that is half full rather than half empty. That’s the kind of person I want to be around. Actually, that’s the kind of person I want to be.