Every once in awhile we all hit a bump in life's
road. A disruption that for some period of time
takes us out of our groove. Often dragging us
to places we'd rather avoid. Yesterday a series
of events put me in a bad place. One where all
was doom and gloom. Normally I'm quite able
to shift gears and look on the bright side. Yet
for a time I simply couldn't see the light. The
good news is that within hours ALL was good.
Except for the fact that I was suffering from
my own bout of self-imposed post traumatic
stress syndrome. Leaving me emotionally and
physically exhausted. Which was all my fault.
Why do bad things happen to good people? In
my ample experience the majority of crisis in
our lives are self-inflicted. For reasons well
within our control we make the wrong decision.
Which by it's very flawed provenance comes to
no good. Given the choice we purposefully opt
to take the path of most resistance. And later
wonder why we're in such a mess. Thus I've no
excuse for the dark cloud that hovered over me
for a couple of hours. Having no one to blame
but myself. Not the unseasonably cold weather.
Nor my patient yet obstinate spouse. Or the fact
that we may be on the brink of war.
Ultimately the only thing we can control are
ourselves. Hence while it would be oh so easy
to claim our problems are driven by outside
influences, the finger needs to point directly
at us. Life is if nothing else a manifestation
of the domino effect. One subtle nudge in the
wrong direction can send all of our hard work
crashing. Which is ample evidence that every
decision we make is of upmost importance.
So when we start to wonder what went wrong,
recall each and every choice made. And then
embrace full responsibility for whatever ails
you. Only YOU can make the difference.
Assuming we are what we eat, why not consider
healthy options? Knowing that every politician,
local to national are motivated by some sort of
hidden agenda, think before voting. Instead of
assuming you can change others - isn't it better
to accept them for who they are? If any of us are
totally honest with ourselves, we will attribute
99% of our challenges to actions we freely (or
cavalierly) took. Sure there are natural disasters.
However most risks to our health and happiness
are self-inflicted. So choose carefully. And when
you mess up - fess up. And hopefully learn from
your mistakes. Otherwise be a repeat offender...
