Gratitude: Cutting out the BS!
Some say life is hard, try to screw it, then say life is not balanced. Meanwhile, someone out there with the same amount of nothingness is living out the best of every day. Is life really hard or simply relative?
Everyone in life will feel a sense of emptiness from time to time that will draw them closer to fulfillment or ruin. I like to think of life as a “Choose your adventure” journey with many predestined paths.
All of our excuses no matter how real are mostly BS as there is always someone somewhere with the same situation making things happen.
No person is born readily knowing what they would become in essence, but with every choice we make with what we are presented, we move closer to a path, whatever we think it is.
Choosing the right perspective on life matters more than you think and only you can choose one that makes your life meaningful, happy and complete. -Thomas L
Everything in life is relative
Whatever definition we give to our lives—broke, rich, good or bad, etc; are all relative. Life is just doing its own thing—flowing, but charting a course with our choices through our perception of life.
I once read two fables that are my favorite to date. One is of a man who made no judgment about his life, simply taking everything in his life as “All things work together for good”, and the other, is of a man who believes “God is always good”.
Fable one: Maybe
Copied from Tomaslau.com
There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many years.
One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to visit.
“Such bad luck,” they said sympathetically.
“Maybe,” the farmer replied.
The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three other wild horses.
“How wonderful,” the neighbors exclaimed.
“Maybe,” replied the old man.
The following day, his son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to offer their sympathy for his misfortune.
“Maybe,” answered the farmer.
The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the army. Seeing that the son’s leg was broken, they passed him by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out.
“Maybe,” said the farmer.
Fable two: God is good
Copied from the Aimteam
A King had a male servant who in all circumstances always said to him, “My king, do not be discouraged because everything God does is perfect, and there are no mistakes”.
One day, the king and his servant went hunting and a wild animal attacked the king. The servant managed to kill the animal but couldn’t prevent his majesty from losing a finger.
Furious and showing no gratitude, the King said; “If God was good, I wouldn’t have been attacked and lost one finger.”
The servant replied, “Despite all these things, I can only tell you that God is good, and everything He does is perfect. He is never wrong.”
The King outrageously became infuriated by his servant’s response and ordered the arrest of his servant.
While being taken to prison the servant told the king again, “God is Good & Perfect.”
On another day, the king left alone for another hunt and was captured by savages who use human beings for rituals.
On the altar, the savages found out that the king didn’t have one finger in place, so he was released. He was considered ‘incomplete’, to be offered to their gods for sacrifice.
On the king’s return to the palace, he imperatively ordered the release of his servant and said, “My friend, indeed God was really good to me; I was almost killed, but for lack of a single finger, I was set free. But then, I have a question. If God is so good, why did He allow me to put you in prison?”
His servant replied, “My king if I had not been put in prison, I’d have gone with you and would have been sacrificed; because I have no missing finger.”
My take on life
I honestly think life is balanced we only just don’t know it yet. Only in hindsight can we see that God is always good and kind to us. My favorite Yoruba proverbs say more:
Proverb one: Ọlọ́run kì í ṣe nǹkan, kó má fi àyè ọpẹ́ sí i; tó bá pá baba lórí, a sì fi irùngbọ̀n rọ́po.
God never does a thing without leaving room for thanksgiving; if God makes a man bald, He’ll give him the beards in replacement. -Yoruba_Proverbs
Proverb two: Ẹni òjò pa, tí àrá kò pa, kó má a dúpẹ́.
Whoever got beaten by rain but wasn’t struck by lightning should be thankful. -Yoruba_Proverbs
I have zero entitlement for my life and thank God for the gift of every single day, and the promise of a great future!
Cheers!
