“The way to love something is to realize it might be lost.” G. K. Chesterton. If you have ever lost someone close to you; a spouse, a child, a sibling, or just a close friend I know your pain as I too have lost several close people over the years. And yes I do have some regrets due to the loss of these special people. It isn’t my intent to be cathartic during this short message but to just ask you a simple question: are there people in your life today that if they left here today, they would leave a hole in your heart because there were things unsaid, actions not taken or just time not spent with them that now it is too late – forever. In today’s “Me, My, Self” world far too many people take for granted the people in their lives that have meaning and they wait too long to take the actions or say the words assuming there will be the time in the future. Well, folks, the answer is simply – yes and no. Yes, you might have time in the future for them and no you might not. The problem is – we don’t know which applies to each of them the yes or the no. Are you willing to take that risk with some of the special people in your life?
“All of the significant battles are waged within the self.” S.B. Kopp. In my latest book, “Success and Happiness Are an Inside Job” I discuss several of the issues connected with this quote. (and – no I didn’t select this quote to promote my book – it was pure synchronicity that I found it). What I would like to share is why the meaning hidden in this quote is very significant. All negative life experiences are rooted to some degree in fear. Fear is an emotion that is millions of years old in humans. It originated in what is referred to today as the Reptilian brain, which is still an active part of every human’s brain therefore, all of our thoughts and actions have to some degree fear located in the thinking process. One quick example. Let’s say one of a person’s dominant fears is loneliness. So they go out of their way to make themselves available to society in a variety of ways. Join clubs, are active in church, find ways to go out into the public socially and any other activity that keeps them busy. At some point, they will once again, find themselves alone. So, they turn on the TV, scroll the internet, or anything that keeps them busy and connected. This will not cure their fear of loneliness until they get to the inner root cause of this emotion, concern for its impact on their life, or the need for the approval or appreciation of others. My point – outside stuff will not cure this issue or solve this need for change, this is an inside battle that must be dealt with from within.
“We meet ourselves time and again in a thousand disguises on the path of life.” Carl Jung. If you have never read any of Jung’s works I highly recommend him. But, in this short message, I can’t summarize all of his amazing wisdom. But I will leave you with this thought – have you ever repeated the same mistake in the present that you did in the past? Have you ever, missed an opportunity in the present that was given to you in the past and you passed it up both times? Have the habit of reliving some negative portion of your past again and again in the present? I don’t know your personal history but I am guilty of all of these. And why – come on folks . . . I teach this stuff, so you would think I would know better. My answer is that life has taught me that repeated mistakes, failures, missed opportunities is life trying to teach me what it wants me to learn a particular lesson and it will keep trying until – I GET IT. Is life trying to teach you anything now . . .