Tag Archives: hope

It’s Never Too Late

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My daughter just recently told me the most exciting thing. Her biggest regret in life has always been that she was never able to march in a DCI Corp. She absolutely adores music, marching and performing with a flag.

As a family, we have followed Drum Corps and loved it for over thirty-five years, so she comes by her addiction naturally.

A few months ago, one corps, celebrating a sixty-fifth anniversary, issued an invitation to alumni, other corps members and anyone interested to join a performance at the International Finals this year. Well, my daughter was certainly interested and applied. She was accepted and will be performing with a Drum Corps this year.

Her all time wish has been granted! Her excitement is beyond belief for a middle-aged woman fulfilling a dream she has had since she was a teenager.

And as she said to me – it’s never too late!

How true that is! A dream is a dream until it has a deadline and then it becomes a goal. A goal then requires action to become a plan. My sweetie has graduated to a plan from a dream after thirty-five years.

She never gave up. She never lost hope. She never let her dream fade. And Voila! She is going to be living her dream day this August in Indianapolis.

My son-in-law wanted to fly since he was a little boy. He couldn’t see how that could ever happen when he was growing up. It seemed too far away to ever become a reality for him.

As an adult he finally had the time and the finances and began taking flying lessons. One at a time, step by step, over the years, he progressed to the point where he qualified for an Airline Transport Pilot rating.

And one day, he was hired by a Regional air carrier. It wasn’t too late after all! He could fly for a living, revel in his dream and support his family, all at the same time. He was one happy soul.

Living your dream brings a joy like nothing else, even if it comes after years of hoping and wishing. Maybe even more so because of the years of hoping and wishing.

The secret is to keep the ambition alive in your soul. Keep feeding it with hope and possibility. Never let it die. Never let it disappear. Never let the negative words in your head convince you it will not happen.

Because it is never too late!

Life

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Life is very interesting, to say the least. We start out with very simple needs – food, warmth, safety. And it just gets more complicated from there.

As we grow, we need more, use more, give more, interact more. Simplicity becomes complexity and we adapt to the changes as they slowly or rapidly occur. Each decision, each experience, leads us down a unique path, which we have never seen before. Each moment will be different and will have a significance all its own.

It is hard to be prepared for such unknown events. They will always be surprising. Sometimes in a joyful way. Sometimes in a sad way. But good or bad, happy or sad, cheerful or sorrowful, life is always a gift. A gift to be treasured, shared and learned from. It is certainly not to be abused, wasted or hoarded.

Life constantly speaks to hope for the future. It is forever producing young to encourage growth and evolution in the world. Adaptation is equal to survival and so life goes on. It is an ever-changing new way to begin again, try a different idea, explore a unique concept for existence, see what might work. And if that fails, try again.

Life is a teacher of perseverance, strength and love. Ask any elder in your family and they will tell you how they have learned and played by the rules of life. They will also be glad to explain to you what they have learned about winning, losing, laughing, crying, loving, hating, living, dying. They know because life teaches everything. It is up to us to pay attention.

We also transmit life to others. We teach what we know and pass it on to the younger ones. We do this mostly by living our best life and being the best example we can to those who watch us. Whether we know it or not, life flows through us in everything we do, usually in the most simple things.

Life is a conundrum. It can often be at odds with our dreams and hopes. It is often difficult, hard, seemingly unlivable even.

We can be confused as to the purpose of our life – what is it all about anyway? Is our whole destiny simply to live out our years as best we can and then die?

Should it not be that we act today in such a way that tomorrow we are a much better person? I certainly hope I can do that every day of my life. Life gets messy, which makes it hard, but that is my hope.

Our True Heritage

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By Thich Nhat Hanh

The cosmos is filled with precious gems.

I want to offer a handful of them to you this morning.

Each moment you are alive is a gem, shining and containing earth and sky, water and clouds.

It needs you to breathe gently for the miracles to be displayed.

Suddenly you hear the birds singing, the pines chanting, see the flowers blooming, the blue sky, the white clouds, the smile and marvelous look of your beloved.

You, the richest person on Earth, who have been going around begging for a living, stop being the destitute child.

Come back and claim your heritage.

We should enjoy our happiness and offer it to everyone.

Cherish this very moment.

Let go of the stream of distress and embrace life fully in your arms.

 

Growing Older

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I think I’m already old and there are so many things about my age I was not prepared for. Like the fact that it hurts to get out of bed in the morning.  Or the need for eve-increasing eyeglass prescriptions.  Or the fact that I now tip over so easily, kind of like a Weeble.

I’m not sure when this all happened.  Just sort of gradually over the years.  I know I don’t walk as fast as I used to and I certainly don’t run anymore.  I have arthritis in a couple of my fingers and my eyesight is definitely not what it used to be.  I forget more things but I am still able to learn new things.

My body has declined as I have aged.  That is a fact.  But I am still mobile and am still able to do my hand sewing.  Those are big gifts I have been given.

I am definitely a lot smarter and wiser than I’ve ever been.  Over the many years of experience, I have gained knowledge that is indispensable to me now.  It was earned, it was paid for, it is mine.

As I age, I gain wisdom and grace to deal with life in all its forms – the good and the difficult. Decisions become easier because I’ve tried many options in the past.  I’m now the one that passes that learning to the younger ones in the family.

So it seems to be a real balancing act.  As part of me is losing strength, another part is gaining.  I remember past days when I could do something that I no longer can do, but I also look forward to tomorrow when I will be better than I am today.

Which means every day is my best day.

What I’m Really Afraid Of

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In these trying times, the TV is constantly telling us what we should fear – closeness, touching, disease, crowds, people, coughs, germs, viruses.  These things may be of concern to me, but I’m not really afraid.  There are other things that truly frighten me.

Allowing people, especially children, to live in hunger frightens me.  People are so damaged physically and psychologically by the effects of poor nutrition or no nutrition. That, in turn, damages our whole world.  We all become less by the loss of potential in others.   Leaders, teachers, thinkers and artists are lost because of poverty and hunger.

Allowing hate and bigotry to exist frightens me.  Judging people unfairly by their religion or skin color is so divisive.  Teaching children to hate others is so wicked as to be absolutely sinful.  Our world can’t abide any more division and war.

Allowing and participating in greed frightens me.  Greed leads to the oppression and subjugation of people.  There’s enough for everyone but not enough for everyone’s greed. To meet the needs of someone’s greed, someone else will always have to do without. Hence more poverty and hunger.

Abiding violence frightens me.  Our violent selves are our lesser selves and should not be tolerated.  What comes of violence is more violence, not peace.  And that really scares me.

These are the true dangers of our world, I believe.  These are the things we need be aware of and mindful of.

Even while we are quarantined, we can be aware of the needs of others.  We can be fair and kind to all people.  We can share the wealth with everyone.  We can be calm and gentle in all our interactions.

The treatment of the whole world starts with our treatment of every person in our small world.  How we act in every little situation will affect the entire universe.  We can do healing or harm with every spoken word.

Make every action count.  It will become your habit and your character.

Am I Still My Brother’s Keeper?

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Well, the Coronavirus certainly has made itself known and recognized in our world.  Events cancelled and/or postponed.  Travel stopped.  Schools and businesses closed.  Vacations extended.  People quarantined.  A country under a State of National Emergency.

And, of course, the panic buying of emergency goods and stockpiling of all manner of products.  It’s all scary stuff!  What is a person to do?

First, I refuse to live in fear.  I am a person who always sees the glass not only half-full but full to overflowing.  No matter what, my world is abundant and full and positive – always. No virus can take that from me.

I’m also going to be cautious, so as not to harm myself or anyone else.  I have an obligation to everyone to be sensible and reasonable with my health and theirs.  There is no reason to take unnecessary risks that would potentially harm anyone.

Therefore, I will follow standard guidelines and common sense in dealing with this contagious disease, as I have with every other contagious disease I have confronted.

My convenience and whim should not scare or endanger anyone I care about.  So I will be thoughtful and caring in my actions.  But I will not be afraid.

If someone needs my assistance or help in any way, I am obligated to give aid.  Not just if it’s convenient and not just to the point of discomfort.  But all the way.  I’m supposed to give whatever is needed, for as long as needed, to whoever needs it.  Even if it kills me. Hard words to live by.

So I can’t in good conscience do anything that is only for me and leaves my fellow sister or brother out on their own.  Such as buying all the water in the store and leaving none for anyone else.  It seems selfish to me.

If you have all the water and your neighbor has none, and that neighbor gets sick, are you willing to take water to your neighbor and stay with him until he gets well?  Just asking.

These are hard times.  We have responsibilities to ourselves, our loved ones and everyone around us.  The environment seems to be one of extremes and getting more so. Confusion is all around.  Decisions are being made for us, which makes the world feel out of control.

But we can always decide how we react to anything.  No one can tell us how to do that. That is entirely up to each of us.

We can always choose to be calm, wise and intentional.

That’s my plan.