Written November 2000
(1/12/2010- This first part applies once again, as I learn to deal with Rick's suicide.)
For so long my life seemed out of control..
so many things have happened that were harsh or painful...
It seemed as if every breath I took, every step I made,
took a effort that left me so exhausted I wasn't sure that there was another
step in
me.
Recently I heard a speaker at a lecture ask if we were living life with
purpose...
or were we just letting life happen to us?
I realized that sometimes
we can become so used to life being harsh that it just becomes a way of life...
Was there a chance that I was just letting life happen to me?
Wondering forced me take a look at my life, as it is today, and I was able to
see
I have a very good life...
Keeping in mind that a walk begins with that first step
here are some of the things that helped me feel like
I was having a say in what happened in my life
when things beyond my control were happening,
and that have helped me move on to a life worth living and enjoying...
Have a plan:
Write down three things that will give you goals to work towards:
One that needs to be done
(I'll weed the flower beds by Saturday)
(I did it)
One you want to do
I'll get that new haircut next payday
(YeeHaw)
One career or work or personal growth orientated
(I'll learn Excel by April 1st, 2001)
(Gawd, I've learned it and I still hate Excel)
Routines are fine, they get us up, sometimes they get us out, give us purpose
when we need them
They can also become a rut...
Do one thing every single day that is outside your routine
and make it something different every time.
Stop for an ice cream.
Take a walk thru the park.
Window shop.
Eat at a sidewalk cafe.
Make little things fun
My mailman wears a headset. Every single time I have seen him
since
I moved here I have greeted him and asked him how he is.
He couldn't hear me, so he failed to respond.
It was insufferably rude of him
so I made it a goal of mine to get a response from him.
One day he took off his headset and asked me what it is that
I am always saying to him.
Now he knows that I used to deliver the mail and that I understand his job,
and he always greets me with a smile now. yeeeee hawwww!
There is a clerk at my grocery store that never smiles. It's not that she is not
friendly,
it's that she is so concentrated on what she is doing
that she isn't aware that she isn't smiling.
I took that as a personal challenge and finally was able to get her to smile!
Know how I did it? I made little jokes, and I kept making them until
I hit her funny bone.
Now she always greets me with a smile and a special greeting :)
Bring pleasure into your life
Life may not seem like it, tied into whatever our relationships, jobs, etc
are...
but life really is a series of choices.
We can gain some sense of direction by admitting to ourselves that we make
little
and big choices, every day.
If life seems out of control
then learn to recognize the areas where you do have control
and do things that make making those choices good.
then pat yourself on the back for doing them :)
Get up at a different time...
Eat something different for breakfast....
See? little choices :)
Drive to work thru an area that lifts your spirits
even if it means driving farther or leaving earlier.
Change the station on your radio.
Use the library.
How long has it been since anyone read to you?
Put a storybook in the CD player.
Daydream.
Learn to look at things that make life more difficult in more pleasing terms
Rain is nature giving our world a bath.. go out into it and stomp in a puddle.
Snow is nature's way of putting cotton in our ears...
stop, take some deep breaths and listen to the silence.
It is amazing!
Sit in the window and watch the way the rain trails down the pane...
Turn over wet leaves and look to see what is under them...
If we look for the opportunity life is here, right before us, ticking away,
waiting to be discovered.
Break up your bedtime routine...
Use diff blankets...
spoil yourself.. get out that quilt Grandma made and cuddle into it...
Use a big fluffy pillow...
End your day with a good thought...
let yourself drift off to sleep with a smile on your face...
Count your blessings.
I remember once when I felt my husband was not meeting any of my needs
My pastor's wife carefully pointed out that he was
he was putting clothes on my back,
food in my mouth, a roof over my head, and caring for my children.
Didn't seem like much at the time but it helped me turn the
"my" into "our" in my head (and heart) and
I was able to be blessed by his care.
Then I was able to look at him more kindly and when
I became more loving he became more giving.
My life is my choice
not every single minute of every single day
but
When I look at it closely I see areas where I have influence.
If I work to make that influence a positive one then the areas that are
difficult or painful become livable...
and before I know it there are resolutions to those areas that enable me to have
influence over them also.
when that happens I am living life with purpose
life isn't just happening to me :)
Life need not be an uphill struggle.
Once we acknowledge that we do make choices,
every single day, in small and large ways,
our life actually changes.
Because our attitude has.
The attitude you carry into your walk will affect every single step you make
Whether your steps are large or small...
Forward or back...
Easy or difficult...
how they affect your life
Is your choice...
Is your choice...
Is your choice...