This is Life?

In my seventy years (where did the time go?) of sharing this world with others, I can look back at history and recall various key very personal events.  Those recollections allow me  to look at the present and understand who I am (why I am) today! As for the future? Can you guarantee that I will have one?

In my past, there is a dear friend who attempted suicide (she failed). In my past, there is a young girl who had been sexually abused, and a young woman who was physically abused and emotionally abused. In my past there is a young child with a potentially terminal condition.

In my past there are addictions, a miscarriage, an abortion, bipolar, PTSD and OCD.

In my past are various volunteer positions – running a church youth group – befriending in a crisis intervention unit – creating and coaching a long distance running group – leading and developing a cycling group.

In my past there are feelings of financial strangulation; of emotional frustrations; of helplessness and of isolation. In my past, there are dreams which were never to be realized.

In my present there is a sensitivity to people who are experiencing difficulties coping with their life. In my present, there is a willingness to offer unconditional help wherever I can, without needing to know all the “details” in advance.

In my present, I recognize that people often simply need “space” to digest their particular circumstances, and I respect that need. In my present, I know that things are rarely what they appear to be, and a superficial assessment and conclusion is just plain wrong. In my present, I consciously try and keep an open mind about everything.

In my life, I have learned that material things are literally just “things”! Very few, if any, are irreplaceable and yet I also have learned that many people assess their own value by their possessions. (This is so sad because it is highly unlikely that any of us will be remembered because of our possessions).

In my past, I learned so much about life and people. In my present, I recognize that I am still learning, as are others who may may need to be encouraged to do so for, like me, that will always be the basis for their present.

Life is a never ending learning exercise, or at least it should be. The day that we decide that we have no reason to learn anything further, is the day that we should all be concerned about because, either we have lost our interest in life, or our arrogance will be dictating our view of the world. That would be a serious problem!

Proof-reading this Post, I have to conclude that yes… This is Life! Food for thought.

28 thoughts on “This is Life?”

  1. I’m glad you’ve learned from your life experiences, and are using that knowledge to help others. I think even the most trying times in our life have something to teach us, if only we’re willing to learn. Personally, I have to work on that.

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  2. This is a great post, Colin and I’m totally in agreement with all the points mentioned. May we go on learning, adapting and adjusting our life philosophies until we are 120 years old – then we can retire and get cranky!

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    • Welcome to my blog, and I am so pleased that you enjoyed your visit. Life really does seem to be a series of ups and downs, struggles and celebrations… but those are also what makes us who we are today. I guess that means we have reasons to celebrate even the less than pleasant moments in our past, simply because of their educational value! 🙂

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  5. Since I am two years older than you, I have many of the same people and their problems in my past. I think your philosophy on being non-judgmental and unconditionally doing what you can to help is very admirable; this world needs more people like you in it.

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  6. Yes, that is life! The good, the bad, and the ugly! You, my friend, have been and continue to be an inspiration of how you can take the bad things of life and make something beautiful! You made something beautiful by the genuine compassion,and giving heart that you have in reaching out to others!
    You are very right about how in life you are always learning. Yes, if the time comes to where we are not no longer open to learning more, then that does paint a very sad picture!

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  7. I love the phrase “unconditional help.” Why is it that people need all the gory details before they are willing to help? Judgmental? Being careful? There were times when I wanted to know that someone “deserved” help but now I look at it differently. Unless I am handing out huge amounts of money, I let my gut tell me. Needing help is bad enough but having your whole story in public is even more painful.

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    • Isn’t that the beauty of it? Most people can relate to some aspect(s) of those events. Now if only more people would realize that, then they would feel less isolated by circumstances and more aligned with the rest of us! Suddenly “normal” can mean having to cope with traumatic circumstances 🙂

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