“A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees.” William Blake. Two people can watch the same movie and have different viewpoints. Four people can take the same cruise and have a different experience. Why? It’s really simple – everyone looks at everything through a different set of personal lenses and with different experiences, expectations, history, and opinions. So, who is right? Is everyone wrong? Is anyone wrong? I’ll bet you already have an opinion about these questions. What’s going on in life today as we proceed toward different goals and objectives but we all go through the same or similar; uncertainty, challenges, obstacles, and circumstances? Two people can have an entirely opposing or different view of a similar diagnosis; one person brings hope and optimism to the process of the future while the other person brings fear, blame, negativity and despair to the future. I am not a psychologist and have no right to preach or tell others how to live, react or behave but one thing I have learned through many years of research, world travels, and study, is that the outcome always equals the mindsets we bring to the process. Had a serious disagreement with someone recently about anything? Who was right? Wrong? Neither? Both? What did one of you learn about yourself, the other person, or the circumstance because of the disagreement? The real question is – are you stuck mentally in a certain set of viewpoints that are impacting your relationships, life, and your future in a negative way?
“No one grows old by living. Only by losing interest in living.” Marie Beynon Ray. If I hear one more person tell me “age is just a number” I think I am going to lose it. Yes, age is just a number but the real question is how do you define the number? What is your number when it comes to aging and activity? I had an encounter last week (I don’t call them dates anymore) and the person asked me how old I was, so before answering I asked her, did the number matter? Her response was (see the above quote). So I told her and her response was, “your number is too high”. So, naturally, my response was, “So, I guess age “is” just a number but it depends on what the number is.” Have a nice life. When it’s over folks, it’s over. So, do yourself and the people in your life a favor, regardless of your age, live every day as if it were your last, because one it will be.
“For the meaning of life differs from man to man, from day to day and from hour to hour. What matters, therefore, is not the meaning of life in general but rather the specific meaning of a person’s life at a given moment.” Viktor Frankl. If you have not read Frankls’ book, “Mans Search for Meaning”, I can’t stress enough how it will potentially influence every aspect of your life and future. It is one of the world’s all-time bestsellers and why? Here is a man who experienced circumstances that few of us or any of us have had to endure that was so degrading that many people can’t even read about them. So, when you look around you at the world today at people who seem to have an issue with; political correctness, with other’s rights or privileges, with what they believe is unfair or wrong . . . give me break folks. If you think you have issues in today’s world with your boss, your neighbor, your relatives or any of the politicians who are just stupid and out of touch, just visit any communist country in the world for a few days and I will guarantee you will (or hopefully will no longer) realize
that, regardless of your circumstances, most people around the world are worse off than you in many ways.