Where is it that we put our focus in life? What do we give our energy to?
Without a doubt, this Human Experience can be an arduous and difficult journey sometimes, fraught with pitfalls, trials and tragedies. Often, we feel like — despite our best efforts — that we just don’t ”have” enough, or we can’t ”do” enough, or the world itself ”isn’t” enough.
Pacific sunset; from the top of Cougar Peak, CA (near Tomales Bay)
We see it — this "lack" — and we are quite aware that something seems very wrong with the picture.
If you have visited these pages in the past, you probably have noticed that I often talk about gratitude, even though I also often rail on about various hardships and the ”wrongs” of the world.
My point here is that it can be very easy to lose sight of the fact that there are lots of things we do have… and it's all too easy to just put all our energy and drive into ”what’s missing.”
I’m by no means denying that things are sometimes not as they should be, but there’s an awful lot to be grateful for, and let’s not forget about that simply because we're getting mired down in our eternal focus on ”what we DON’T have.”
Busy bee on a blackberry blossom
There is an interesting synergy that arises when we remain mindful of both sides of the coin.
Many of the happiest and most at peace individuals I have had the privilege of meeting have invariably managed to strike a balance between having gratitude for ”what IS” and their desire to find and change ”what’s MISSING.”
Conversely, many of those who seem to be eternally engaged in their own personal eternal ”crusades” to address all the perceived ”lacks” of the/their world are often also the biggest ”Debbie Downers” you can meet, eternally dismissing any good and positive things around them as ”not important...” or simply taking them for granted, like those things are some kind of birthright.
Eucalyptus blossoms
Let's consider a close-to-home example: Do you lament and rail on over the fact that your most recent Hive post "only made $2.00" or do you find gratitude for the fact that you were rewarded $2.00 more than you would have been, if it had been Facebook?
Ultimately, making too much fuss over "what you don't have" can become a way to completely miss out on living in — and enjoying — the present moment because your gaze and intention is always focused on some point in the future where you might secure that elusive missing thing.
From where I am sitting? Life is too short! Enjoy it, while you can!
Thanks for reading, and have a great remainder of your week!
How about YOU? Do you often worry about "what's missing?" Or are you more oriented towards "what already is?" Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!
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Created at 20220518 19:55 PDT
0577/1823