Talking about life and living, Pope Paul VI had the following thoughts to share:
"Somebody should tell us, right at the start of our lives, that we are dying, Then we might live life to the limit, every minute of every day. Do it! I say. Whatever you want to do, do it now! There are only so many tomorrows."
Before we move on with the topic, I owe an apology to all my regular readers for going off on a hibernation and powering up after a gap. You, the reader, have been regular in your readings, your feedback, your comments and your brickbats as well. I, on the other hand haven't been as regular as you. All I can say is that sometimes an off is needed to contemplate over things surrounding our lives, sometimes an individual needs to pause and take in the view in front of them. This is what I would call 'stock-taking' of the situation at hand. My sincere apologies for being amiss from your lives, I hope I don't present such a situation again in the near future.
Having said that, the reason behind this post is pretty simple. Just take a short pause/break from whatever work you are doing and ask yourself, "Have I lived my life or am I just existing?"
Everywhere I look around, starting with my own life to the lives of those of my near and dear ones, this question becomes more and more apparent. Most of us are usually working, sitting behind a desk waiting for the month to end and the salary to get credited. Then we go on a shopping spree and finish off all that income and by the middle of the month, we are back to the same wait for the month to end.
Of course, there are quite a few of us who are born managers and one way or another, those few find the time to get work done and live their life to the fullest as well.
This post is dedicated to all those people out there who are still trying to live their lives and take control of it, rather than letting their lives control them. Read the following seven ways of doing just that:
Learn to let go
Life is a complex dish made up of many different flavors. Sometimes it's spicy, sometimes bitter, sometimes bland while sometimes full of sweetness. Learn let go of the bitter, sour parts because keeping them encased in your memory will only make the pain even more difficult to subside. If you don't let go of your previous bad experiences and emotions, how would you take on the incoming future bad experiences. Life has been designed by the Supreme power in such a manner that happiness and sadness comes to everyone of us at different points of our life. So, there is no point in holding on to that one emotion for eternity, just let it go.
Explore and know yourself inside out
Life is all about knowing what you, as an individual, desire and want. Your strengths, your weakness, your talents and your skills, all will be revealed to you if can just pause to introspect deep inside you. For some of you, this would be a simple task but for many of you, this would be task around which your entire life revolves around. Even if it takes that long, you owe it to yourself to find out the true reason of your existence and the value you can add to the human society. So, keep exploring and don't settle.After knowing yourself, then be yourself
One of the problem which arises is that we tend to imitate other people, other views and opinions just to give our inner soul some satisfaction. However, you are actually painting a wrong picture in front of others and more importantly, in front of yourself. Once you have fully explored your inner self and know yourself inside out, only then can you be yourself.
Today's Thought After knowing yourself then be yourself [tweet this]
Don't be too harsh on yourself
Life is like a long winding road which gets over pretty quickly. Both you and I are still humans and therefore we are always subject to mistakes and errors. Take such situations in your stride, don't criticise yourself severely for such mistakes. Always keep in mind that bad days will give you experiences and valuable lessons of life. Learn from them and give yourself some love as well.Enjoy the little joys of life
A major breakthrough in your lifetime is quite a rare occasion. So, you're entitled to the euphoria and ecstasy of being in such a situation. However, that doesn't mean that you should stop celebrating the small joys of everyday life. Remember, how as a child we would be at cloud number nine because the teacher tugged at our cheeks and said 'good boy/girl' or the time when we beat our dads at racing. Yes, life is about all these small moments which bring us joy and a smile to our face. Treasure them and enjoy them to the fullest while they last.Life begins at the end of your comfort zone
Ever ventured out alone in a new city? or went to the market to bargain for stuff? or travelled alone on a train? or finished that task which you had always made you feel uncomfortable? or got rid of that fear of heights/spiders/ghosts? From childhood to youth, we are brought up in a cocooned environment created by our parents. Naturally, they want to protect us, however, if you stick around in the cocoon for too long, that same safety net will become an impedance in your growth and progress.Take a look in the habitat around you. Look at how the birds teach their young ones by pushing them off the edge in the hope that they will learn to spread their wings and fly. Or the animals who teach their young ones to go around hunting in search of food.You, I or anybody else for that manner, cannot really grasp the limits and boundaries of our thoughts, talents and strengths till we don't put them to the test. The only way to test it is to consciously move outside your comfort zone. This is the singular most important trait which all of us should imbibe in ourselves to attain a life worth smiling about.Choose your relationships wisely
Usually we tend to get fooled by what we see in the movies or read about in books. However, our relationships are pretty different than that. A relationship, especially that of a life partner, calls for enormous amounts of patience for each other and being able to express love for another even after 30 or 40 years of being together. Such relationships are not only meant for the good and happy times but also for the troublesome periods full of despair and obstacles.Choose the relationship wisely, don't get into a relation just because you're lonely. Sometimes, the wait for a great relationship reaps great rewards and eternal happiness in the long run.
Today's Thought Choose your relationships wisely [tweet this]
This list of 7 things was by no means an exhaustive list. I'm sure all of you have even more experiences and thoughts to share. Go ahead, express your views and opinions in the comments section below.
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By Jay Singh
