To put things in a nut shell, life should really be about the journey and not the final destination.
Most people go about their day moving from one hour to the next with the simple goal of making it to the end of the day or the end of the week. These are the same people who move through their entire lifetime just waiting for the next mile stone; once I graduate from college, as soon as I get my 'real' job, after I am married, when the kids are raised; when I am retired. People get so focused on where they are trying to go in life, they seldom stop to enjoy the path that is taking them there.
My grandparents are a great example of a couple who never paid any mind the journey and have now arrived at their destination having never really enjoyed the trip. And for that matter, they really aren't even able to enjoy the destination!
My grandparents were hard working people who did well for themselves, they raised 2 successful sons who in turn raised a total of 8 successful children. Despite living through the great depression and various other difficult times, my grandparents managed to save a sizable nest egg for their retirement.
I believe their philosophy was to live like no one else so that you can live like no one else. While I think this is a pretty good philosophy, and worthy of consideration my grandparents may have gone a little over board with it. Here is what I mean.
- They never wasted anything-If it could be reused it was reused. If it could be saved for later, it was saved for later. If someone else could wear it, they wore it. They had to save for retirement.
- They never bought new-My grandfather was very handy and could fix just about anything. Before they would spend money on something it would be fixed, repaired, patched, welded, sewn, you name it. They had to save for retirement.
- Spend when only necessary-Eating meals out was a rarity. Grandpap would grow a garden, grandma would can the vegetables. Vacations were almost unheard of, they never went anywhere. They had to save for retirement.
So here they are, almost at their final destination, living with very poor health in a nursing home full of strangers. You see, I don't ever really recall seeing my grandparents smile, laugh and actually enjoy themselves. It was always about taking care of things so they would be okay for retirement. Then when retirement came, they had to be careful so that they would be okay during retirement. And when their health began to fail it was always about being careful so they would be okay if they had to go to a home. There was never any joy, happiness or excitement, they were just so focused on the destination they totally missed the scenery along the way.
So how are you living your life? Where is your life heading? And are you stopping along the way to acknowledge even the smallest gifts that are sometimes disguised as disappointment, challenge or difficulty?
Look positively at all the experiences in life, regardless of how bad the experience may be.You will never look back and regret what you missed! As a matter of fact, by acknowledging the bad and training yourself to find the silver lining in all situations you will be happier, healthier and better balanced.
When was the last time you laughed at a really tough situation because if you hadn't laughed you would have cried? Crying, complaining, criticizing and condemning helps absolutely nothing because after all the belly aching is done, the situation is still the same.
Do you know where you are heading and are you happy with how you are getting there? If you could change one thing about your journey what would it be? Post your comment today.
