Do We Have The Slightest Idea?
by We live in an unfathomable time with limitless opportunities and for the most part it is rare that we even know how to take advantage of the slightest particle of the offerings before us, but alas, we are but human. We have slogans, parables and phrases to cover this situation, but again, we are only human.
We are created with many gifts, each individual has something to offer, but social pressure often dictates that we do otherwise. I am sure you have heard about the kid that had the two-hundred dollar tennis shoes, but could not find his lost textbook, or the farmer that forgot to lock the barn door until after the horse was gone and many more like this. We are all guilty of misplaced, weak or lost priorities that have cost us some good time and fortune. Come on now, tell the truth, have you ever said, “I was going to, but I forgot!”… “I should have done that, but I didn’t have time.” … “He made me do it.” … “It’s not like me to say something like that.” These are all lost opportunities and even if you make up for it later, the makeup time cost you because you could have been doing something else worthwhile.
We are only human, but we are correctable, trainable, and responsible with a little effort. To each has been given certain characteristics which we can call gifts. How we use these gifts is most always related to our personal choices. What to do with our tennis shoe money? Locking up the barn first instead of taking an early nap. Putting a little planning and care into the day instead of letting it ramble from hither to thither. We will never be perfect, but we can improve. We will never see all of our own faults, but we can stop looking for fault in others. We will never remember everything, but we can create priorities.
It is not uncommon to rationalize, it is a defense and a way of ducking the issue, we all do it because we are rational beings, but when we rationalize away the consequences or rationalize to cover our losses, then we are not putting our best foot forward in making our lives a little bit better. I am sure you have heard that we learn from our mistakes, some do and some don’t. Don’t use trickery to try to outfox the fox, offer him something better than what he has. He will sooner or later catch on to your tricks and then it will be harder to find him, but give him something he likes better than what he has and he will show up time and time again. Don’t you think this is the way it is with our own training? Aren’t we training ourselves when we develop both good and bad habits? Don’t we outfox ourselves when we try to deceive by rationalization and cover up?
The complexities of life are many and diverse; we have a challenging opportunity to make tremendous strides in bettering ourselves and the world we live in. I guarantee that if you sit back and reflect for five minutes you will be able to think of something that you could do better and when you do better, so do we all. What would you be doing right now if you were not sitting before the computer, you have choices?
Dr Robert E McGinnis — Author of: Paradise Is Where You Find It
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