“Optimism is a kind of heart stimulant — the digitalis of failure.”~Elbert Hubbard
Optimist: “Okay, we all realize that the situation is temporarily hopeless.” Robert Brault
“If you don’t get everything you want, think of the things you don’t get that you don’t want.” Oscar Wilde
“After 5000 years of recorded human history, you wonder, What part of 2,000,000 sunrises doesn’t a pessimist understand?” Robert Brault
Every day I fight the urge as well as the attention towards racing through my day. As I look around at other people, listen to their quick speech, I realize they are probably doing the same thing. None of us acknowledge it likely because we are so unaware of it happening. Most times, I become more conscious of it when I slow down and quiet myself for a few moments.
We waste our precious present time for the unknown
As usual, I question why I and perhaps others, waste our precious present time for the unknown. Most of us are possibly locked into the “good times” to come. This may happen, especially when the present times are not so wonderful. In the end, we are wasting the present when we don’t attempt to filter out the good stuff. Even when our day is not fantastic, there are still moments that are worth recognizing.
So many times we skip over some happy minutes of our day and forget about them in favor of recollecting some future event. Likely the affair could turn out to be a disaster, but we are not presently mindful of that. I’m not sure why our alertness is always about the future. Perhaps we do this out of disappointment at our current situation, or because the unknown still appears to be enticing and exciting. Whatever the reasons, we are truthfully running through our days. I plan weeks ahead, and then wonder where my time vanished so quickly.
We are not focused enough
One answer might be to think more about what appears to be wrong with our present. Are we bored, disappointed, angry, upset, unsure, doubtful, anxious, or fearful? Are all of these present in our reflective thoughts? At times the lives of others give us the impression that we are not focused enough to make our own lives more worthwhile. It seems that if we contend with our minds, send the vibes of contentment through; we sense a feeling of pleasure or accomplishment.
Most people exaggerate their good times
Comparing our lives to others only adds displeasure to the mix. Most people exaggerate their good times and downplay their problems. A skiing tip, fishing experience, or hiking event may appear more impressive than it actually was. Likewise, a simple picnic or day at the beach may emerge with more tears of laughter than we ever imagined possible. How would we explain that our happiest moments were simple events? Perhaps some situations are too perfect to put into words and must be experienced with the heart.
One could say by keeping the daily expectations lower; we might find more satisfaction. I don’t see this as a great answer. I think we can keep our goals high but maintain a positiveness to every situation. By doing so we always see the goodness in all our endeavors, and we find gratification in every experience. Anger, fear, and anxiety are alleviated due to our focus on the ease we have regarding the results.
Floating in the clouds
It isn’t necessary to continuously feel like we are floating in the clouds. We need to emerge intact and satisfied. Life is a mixture all of the time. If we thought long and hard, we would remember that even the wonderful events had moments of displeasure and anxiousness. We relegate those ideas to the back of our minds and turn towards the happy memories. Likewise, when we are having a bad or difficult day, we must make our focal point the happy moments, and concentrate on that.
Leading with our minds
Control is always in our own hands. Perhaps it is time to acknowledge the power of the mind to sway our thinking towards pleasure in our daily occurrences, or throw in some negativity and seek the displeasure. The choice is ours alone. Leading with our minds, allows the body to follow. Skip the leadership of the body over the mind. I think the body can get us into more trouble. The reflection of the mind is in communication with the soul.
Changing the way we look at things, perhaps might alter our attitudes and opinions about the positive and negative attributes. If nothing else, it eases the burdens and lightens the mood, permitting us a softer review of our days. Letting the light shine forth instead of closing the shades, brings a new awareness to any occurrence. Basing our happiness in the future leaves us emotionally and spiritually deprived in the present.
Be attuned to the present moment
As we anticipate a happy occasion in the future, we must ensure our being attuned to the present moment. The gathering at a friend’s house may be exciting to think about, but the laughs and joys experienced with random encounters with friends must never be underestimated nor taken for granted. Perhaps if we reviewed our days before closing our eyes at night, we might find much gratification and serenity within our existence. There is tremendous gratification in helping others. If our day is spent in such an endeavor, perhaps it brings a very high level of contentment.
I don’t want to race through the small stuff, which actually may be the big stuff of which I will forever recall and remember for all of my days. The smudged kisses of a toddler, smirks which evolve into smiles from our teenagers, random hugs from our spouse, thinking of your phone calls from our parents and siblings can never be underestimated. You have today, but perhaps not tomorrow.
We never know about tomorrow
By focusing our attention on the present, we might have fewer times when we question where our years went. It seems to pass by so fast. Yearning will not bring the years back to us. Regret is useless as well as detrimental to our health in every way. What is done is done. Forget about blame. Think about forgiveness and move on by paying heed to your present. It is never too late to develop a positive attitude. After all, is said and done, we still never know about tomorrow, but we do have today, and that is enough care and concern for the day.
Count your daily blessings
Anticipate a happy occasion in the future, but never rely on it to make you happy or bring you serenity in the present moment. Count your daily blessings. Life’s problems dissipate, worries evaporate, today’s pleasures increase, and best of all, your life becomes full of peace when you seek the positive in all situations. Today is satisfying and loaded with love to go around if we observe it with our hearts and quiet our busy thoughts.
“A pessimist sees only the dark side of the clouds, and mopes; a philosopher sees both sides, and shrugs; an optimist doesn’t see the clouds at all — he’s walking on them.” ~Leonard Louis Levinson
“The average pencil is seven inches long, with just a half-inch eraser — in case you thought optimism was dead.” Robert Brault
“Life is a bowl of cherries. Some cherries are rotten while others are good; its your job to throw out the rotten ones and forget about them while you enjoy eating the ones that are good! There are two kinds of people: those who choose to throw out the good cherries and wallow in all the rotten ones, and those who choose to throw out all the rotten ones and savor all the good ones.” C. JoyBell C.
“A positive attitude may not solve all our problems but that is the only option we have if we want to get out of problems.” Subodh Gupta
