Do you ever….

Do you ever look at someone and think you wish you could be them? Or wish you could have someone else’s life? There’s that saying “the grass is always greener on the other side” and I think it is apropo when we look at someone else and assume they are happier on their greener grass. But are they really? You can never know how green the grass is until you’ve rolled around in that grass and compared grass stains on each others clothes. When you compare your existence with someone else, you might find differences or you might find more sameness than you ever imagined. We, as a human race, always look to someone or something bigger and better than ourselves. The reality of our existence is simple – be uniquely YOU. Unabashedly complicated, simplistic, psychologically intricate. Except yourself as you are, flaws and all, and others can follow your lead and do the same. Can you imagine what the world would be like if we had acceptance? FULL acceptance….it’s my utopia, I think.

Do you ever wonder what your life would be like today had you made a different decision or choice yesterday? I wonder this all the time and I am not sure that I like the answers I come up with. Had I made a different decision 20+ years ago I would not be here, where I am today as a person….I know this. But to live in regret is to not really LIVE at all, is it? I think it is okay to have regrets ONLY if you learn from them. Do not dwell on your regrets because when you do, you forget to breathe, you forget to live. Your homework assignment after you read this is to think back 20 years ago to a decision or choice you made, write it down….then write the possible outcomes had you made that “other” choice. Then write down all the moments in your life presently that bring you joy, bring you sadness, or are significant but you never really think about them. What the hell is this for you’re asking, I know. Well, we humans are kind of black and white in how we see things….meaning if we see something on paper, a light goes on in our brains. What you might see is that your life is just perfect for YOU the way it is….it is YOUR definition of perfect. I’m not saying life is peaches and cream, by any means. I am saying that life is hard, life is good, life is beautiful, life is ugly, but it is YOUR life. How you proceed with your life is your decision to make and no one else can give you the joy, the happiness, the love, the sadness, the dreams of what it is to live – except YOU. You have the power within yourself to make those decisions that are right for you at any particular time in your life. Go forth and live your life!

Do you ever look at someone and wonder how they can do something so heinous and horrible? Is there such a thing as survival mode? We all possess the “fight or flight” mentality; however, many of us are not forced to employ this survival technique. We are simply onlookers and think to ourselves “that’s awful” – but not a single person knows what was happening at the moment. All we know is something terrible happened at the hands of another human being. To have empathy is to attempt to understand what someone else has experienced and, hopefully, show compassion. Next time you hear about a crime on the news ask yourself “could I have done that?”; the real, true, raw answer is probably going to surprise you.

I look at my life today – on this very day November 6, 2022 – and yes, I have gone through some crap in all my years – but I have also lived. I am thankful for each moment of my life and for those who have come and gone, stayed gone, come back, or stayed present in my life. Had I made a different decision 20+ years ago I would not be the ME who I am today. I would not have the family I have, nor the friends (you know who you are), and I would not have the person that is my daughter. SO I am thankful for my life today.

Do you ever……just sit back and say “hey, you, thanks for being you” to yourself? Try it….maybe just once a week….work your way up to once a day. Be unabashedly YOU! Happy Sunday, friends.