Key word: worry. With as many age-defying creams out there and "cosmic" elixirs that are sure to add years to our lives, what do we have to worry about? Is that where our fountain of youth is found? What if I told you there really is no fountain of youth, or more so that it's not found in forever creams and neon drinks? The bible says, "Grey hair is a crown of splendor, it is attained by a righteous life (Proverbs 16:31)" and "Remind me that my days are numbered (Psalm 39:4)". Would that make any impression on you about life? Would that grant you a different perspective about the kinds of choices you would make for yourself? I don't know about you, but there is a reason I am getting grey hairs on my head and wrinkles on my face, and I can guarantee it's not so that I can contribute to the insatiable feeding of the cosmetic industry. I am quite simply...living. I don't live in tomorrow anymore. I used to live in many fantasies about what I wanted for myself in my future. I used to live in my future. It was my escape from my present. I used to wonder how old I will be when I die, so that I can plan my days out before it happens.
The more I lived in my future, the less I lived in my present, and the less I lived in my present, the more I got away from reality, and the more I got away from reality...well, surely I missed something. I couldn't tell you what it might have been because I was too busy thinking about my future! I was sitting around waiting for my future to show up, when IN reality, the future did not and does not exist. Do you catch what I'm trying to say here? Worrying about how long your life will be only takes you out of the now because what are you thinking about? You are thinking about the future. I came across a quote that really made a light bulb turn on for me. It goes like this: "We must let go of the life we have planned so as to accept the one that is waiting for us". How simply profound. We have no control over tomorrow, that is, if we're fortunate to be given one. When it comes, what shall we do with it - wish we had yesterday back? Speaking for myself, I prefer to savor what is in front of me. Right now, it is one minute until one of my favorite food shows comes on, so I will sign off and enjoy it. Hey, I may get a great cooking tip!
NEXT WEEK: Clouds and other little things
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Monday, July 19, 2010
...worry about broken dishes
I got this week's idea from a colleague of mine, and though I didn't get her reason why she came up with this in particular, I will venture to say that she meant life is too short to worry about something that won't keep us from falling apart ourselves. So why bother fretting over something that is replaceable? There is a deep connection people have to objects. Many people have great emotional ties to dishes, in particular. To be even more specific, many find deep meaning in plates because that is what they used for a special, pivotal event in their lives. They ate meals on their special plates when they had their parents over for dinner to announce a new pregnancy, or they ate off of their special plates because they joined together to comfort one another after the funeral of a loved one who died.
For whatever reason dishes are held in high regard to people, there is one underlying norm: identity and internal value is found in them. I had a set of blue plates that I bought myself and stored away a long time ago for when the day would come when I would live on my own. Since blue is my favorite color, the plates obviously spoke to me. The pattern was simple yet trendy, kind of like my own style and personality. I felt those plates really spoke of who I was and it somehow gave me some purpose and internal value because of what they represented to me. They were a symbol of freedom to come. Understandable enough, right? Of course. I was the one who picked them out, nobody else. I didn't have to check with anyone for approval. It was all me. It was fun. I looked at them many times over and just dreamed of me and my plates and the life we would have together someday.
When I finally did get my own place, the plates made their home in the cabinet. And that was it. It's not that I didn't like them anymore because I truly did, but they became a PART of something I had made for my life. THEY didn't make my life. They simply became a lovely thing upon which to eat food with people I loved. That's all. I don't even have those plates anymore, and I'm not really sure what happened to the whole set! I just know that they alone had no value, but what I did with them brought the meaning to my life - the experiences of sharing food and time with others.
I didn't pay a lot for them, I don't see the point in doing that. If one chooses to pay a lot for plates, I hope one understands that the value is not in the plates themselves, but for the reason they were made: holding food while you make those important connections with other human beings.
NEXT WEEK: How long your life will be
For whatever reason dishes are held in high regard to people, there is one underlying norm: identity and internal value is found in them. I had a set of blue plates that I bought myself and stored away a long time ago for when the day would come when I would live on my own. Since blue is my favorite color, the plates obviously spoke to me. The pattern was simple yet trendy, kind of like my own style and personality. I felt those plates really spoke of who I was and it somehow gave me some purpose and internal value because of what they represented to me. They were a symbol of freedom to come. Understandable enough, right? Of course. I was the one who picked them out, nobody else. I didn't have to check with anyone for approval. It was all me. It was fun. I looked at them many times over and just dreamed of me and my plates and the life we would have together someday.
When I finally did get my own place, the plates made their home in the cabinet. And that was it. It's not that I didn't like them anymore because I truly did, but they became a PART of something I had made for my life. THEY didn't make my life. They simply became a lovely thing upon which to eat food with people I loved. That's all. I don't even have those plates anymore, and I'm not really sure what happened to the whole set! I just know that they alone had no value, but what I did with them brought the meaning to my life - the experiences of sharing food and time with others.
I didn't pay a lot for them, I don't see the point in doing that. If one chooses to pay a lot for plates, I hope one understands that the value is not in the plates themselves, but for the reason they were made: holding food while you make those important connections with other human beings.
NEXT WEEK: How long your life will be
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
...miss the little things
Running around galavanting...feeling weighed down with circumstances and people's expectations...juggling daily responsibilities...all these things and more are norms of life. We do them or go through them, and when we're done with them, they're right back in our face. We can be like the little hamster on its wheel because it's so easy to be that little hamster. Where do all these things get us? Productivity is always good. Laughs are what we need to balance things out with the tears. We rush and run and rush and run and wait...we rush and run and rush and run and wait. What's on our mind when we go through that? I always find it funny when I see the person who speeds up and zips around the cars only to find him or her self stopped at the red traffic light just a few feet ahead - speeding up to stop.
In all of that, in all of the accomplishments of the day, in the rushing to the restaurants, etc, there may be things we miss if we don't actively look for them. We might miss getting ideas to better our selves and thus positively affect others if we're too busy trying to find out someone else's business. Any of us can die at any moment, on any given day, in any given way. Not to be morbid or pessimistic, but I'm a realist. Freak things happen all the time. We should never think we're indispensable for a moment. I want my life to count for something TODAY. If I'm fortunate enough to have another day be given to me, then I want my life to count for something then as well.
Truly, our days will hold more value and our lives will be more enriched if we pay more attention to the little things around us, and even in us (the still small voice). One morning I was jogging along an irrigated field at the local high school. All of a sudden, a dragonfly the size of a hummingbird was keeping pace with me by my side. It was the neatest thing. It didn't leave me for quite a while until I got close to the end of the field and then we parted ways. It looked like it was made of copper the way the sun was shining on it.
Do you ever watch the clouds? How about the good blessing of a front parking spot when you come around the corner? Watching a dog just lay there and pant - what's going through that little mind? Finding a $10 bill on the ground right in front of you at a busy waterpark with hundreds of people walking around you (that happened to me!)...always seeing a butterfly somewhere...seeing a little child act goofy just because that's who they are, not really trying to impress anyone, but just being themselves...being able to haggle down the price of something you really want...in my case, as a teacher, having a student who decides he wants to start reading the dictionary for fun (still makes my heart melt when I think about it, and 2 different students to top it off!)...
I could go on and on. Look for those little things. Give your attention to them and they will begin to reveal themselves to you more and more. They will bring you reprieve. They will fill you more than a full schedule.
NEXT WEEK: Broken dishes
In all of that, in all of the accomplishments of the day, in the rushing to the restaurants, etc, there may be things we miss if we don't actively look for them. We might miss getting ideas to better our selves and thus positively affect others if we're too busy trying to find out someone else's business. Any of us can die at any moment, on any given day, in any given way. Not to be morbid or pessimistic, but I'm a realist. Freak things happen all the time. We should never think we're indispensable for a moment. I want my life to count for something TODAY. If I'm fortunate enough to have another day be given to me, then I want my life to count for something then as well.
Truly, our days will hold more value and our lives will be more enriched if we pay more attention to the little things around us, and even in us (the still small voice). One morning I was jogging along an irrigated field at the local high school. All of a sudden, a dragonfly the size of a hummingbird was keeping pace with me by my side. It was the neatest thing. It didn't leave me for quite a while until I got close to the end of the field and then we parted ways. It looked like it was made of copper the way the sun was shining on it.
Do you ever watch the clouds? How about the good blessing of a front parking spot when you come around the corner? Watching a dog just lay there and pant - what's going through that little mind? Finding a $10 bill on the ground right in front of you at a busy waterpark with hundreds of people walking around you (that happened to me!)...always seeing a butterfly somewhere...seeing a little child act goofy just because that's who they are, not really trying to impress anyone, but just being themselves...being able to haggle down the price of something you really want...in my case, as a teacher, having a student who decides he wants to start reading the dictionary for fun (still makes my heart melt when I think about it, and 2 different students to top it off!)...
I could go on and on. Look for those little things. Give your attention to them and they will begin to reveal themselves to you more and more. They will bring you reprieve. They will fill you more than a full schedule.
NEXT WEEK: Broken dishes
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