The Difficulty of Choices.

 The Difficulty of Choices.

 

Emerson said once upon a time that we are not here to make ourselves happy. We are here to serve others. Yet, all things considered, we have to be our OWN selves despite what goes on around us or the expectations of society. Attempting to be a moral person who can be counted on for the right responses to the problems in life is not always the easiest route through our lives. Today, a man known to me asked if someone could just assure him that he was not as bad a person as some seemed to think simply because he did not respond to them as they wished. Hello, we have to have a reasonable approach to life—our own as well as that of others. In my own case—with which it should seem familiarity would be simpler—getting busy doing something rather than sitting around frowning and grumbling about my lot in life would make more sense and provide some measure of a sense of accomplishment. It does not matter if it is cleaning out a chicken coop or mopping up the repeated dog prints on the living room floor. Getting something attempted and maybe even accomplished is much more satisfying than being concerned about what others might think of me! WHY should anyone’s opinion of me change my way of thinking or acting? Social pressures are always around in one way or another—how we portray ourselves in public has a very decided affect on us and on others. If it is easy to make me cringe at what you think of me, then my strength is not within my own character. Once a professor said that America’s downfall was its sense of individuality. Nope, that was so much male bovine excretia. That sense and determination toward individuality allows growth in a nation, in a family, in a person. We must realize a higher calling to the laws of God, to the moral compass that gives us reason for empathy and compassion. But we cannot let the opinions of this crazy society warp our instincts for survival. We have to get up off our backsides and do what we can, first for ourselves—the bootstrap approach—and then for others. We have choices to make. We can let ourselves fear all that is around us, or we can be determined to survive and even thrive. What we can be is an example to others. So, if one finds the “poor me” attitude sticking too close to one’s life, it is time to make a choice. Live life with a determination that can inspire others. Otherwise, what is the point?

 

Rest well, my friends. You are loved.