The "I WANT MORE !!!" Disease

Have you ever sat down to analyze the lives of people that 

actually have what most of us dream about having? Are they truly happy? How many millionaire actors and singers have taken their own lives or died from a drug overdose in the last ten years? And of those who are alive, how many have been in and out of rehab time and time again? Too  many to count.  So what is it, why isn't money enough? Could it be that they were chasing a dream and when they reach it they realize it was only an "illusion" of happiness? hmmmmm :/

There is a deadly disease that is plaguing the world around us. It creeps in nonchalantly but before we know it, it spreads throughout our lives and eventually kills us. Its called the "I want more" disease. haha Oh yes its contagious, spreads quickly and its malignant.  One of the main ways this disease spreads its through social media. Pictures of beautiful homes, new cars, jewelry and grand vacations fill our news feeds.  Announcements of new jobs, promotions and achievements come in like floods. Unfortunately if we are living a life of dissatisfaction instead of rejoicing with our friends about these things we curl up in a ball and think "what about me?? I WANT MORE!!  lol We give in to the temptation of comparing ourselves with others. 

But don't fear! There is a cure... And no the cure doesn't include a huge house with a big yard, pool and top of the line furniture and appliances. Nor does it include luxury cars, exotic vacations, maid service and personal chefs. hahaha It would be nice though! The cure is simply choosing. The daily choices we make should not only include nutrition and exercise but also attitudes and emotions.  Would you believe it if I told you that if you embrace this you don't have to buy another material thing to feel satisfied? We cannot become a slave of our surroundings by allowing what we have or don't have dictate whether we are happy/satisfied or not. Desperately wanting more is chasing an illusion that becomes a temporary satisfaction; it's a never ending hunger. It isn't to say that we shouldn't strive for bigger and better things. That's all good, its when the "things" become conditions for our well-being that we lose.  

We lose because we were made to be givers not takers... You will find that the dissatisfaction you feel with yourself, your life and with the things you don't have will subside as soon as you CHOSE to live your life according to its purpose.   

Thanks for reading :)

The Devil Made Me Do It!

I wonder how many people got away with murder using that phrase. LOL Throughout my life, being brought up in a spiritual home, I can recall hearing people say “it’s not them, it’s the devil” when people did something wrong.  I now realize that people used it as a means of excusing  our human sinful nature.  Instead of accepting and taking responsibility for our actions we rather take the easy route and make excuses.  I am not denying evil influences, mental illness, and lack of coping skills; I am however unmasking the use of it as an excuse for our wrong doing.  We underestimate the power to choose. 

A mistake is very different than a choice.  

Mistake: An error or fault resulting from defective judgment or deficient knowledge.  A misconception, misunderstanding or misinterpretation.

Choice: OPTION.

Simply said, when we make a mistake, we do something unknowingly.  We didn't mean any harm, but we misinterpreted/ misunderstood a situation to the point of causing us to act under mislead judgment resulting in a mistake. 

Example: I meet a person, I get to know them and they seem to be trustworthy enough for me to give them a key to my house. When I return home, I've been robbed. MISTAKE

~versus~

I meet an ex-convict that just came out of prison after serving time for robbing a convenient store.  I give them the keys to my house. When I return home, I've been robbed.  CHOICE. LOL I knew facts that could have saved me.

Things like this happen to us time and time again throughout our lives.  We put our trust in people and they become either a blessing or a lesson.  This is part of life.  What shouldn't be part of life is excusing our actions or the actions of others to avoid consequences.  In the end, what we truly avoid is theirs or our own, growth and maturity. 

The next time we or someone we know is sorry for something they have done, don't accept "the devil made me do it" as an answer… analyze it, was it a mistake or a choice?  When we put that into perspective we can either be truly sorry and change our ways or learn our lesson and change our ways. Either way it should not be repeated.  

What's your missing piece?

Not too many years ago I went through a tough stage of transition.   I was unfocused, confused, and lost.  My mother had been diagnosed with colon cancer a few months prior. I spent a month with her in Ohio while she received her chemo therapy.   That experience served as a reality check for me.  I had never seen my mother in so much pain; she looked helpless.  I couldn't help but think about how strong and  full of life she had been at my age. That thought brought me to a different place.  A place of truth, the truth that we will all become fragile and dependent one day.

It ignited in me a sense of urgency that I didn't know what to do with.  An urgency to do what? was my question.  I'm married, I have kids, and I have a college degree, I don't care about material things so that's nothing to have an urgency about.  So pretty much I have everything I've ever wanted.   What was I missing? I thought about my mother's life and how she had devoted it to service and even to this day at 71 years old she is still serving others.

When I came back home, I felt differently about life.  I understood on a deeper level how fragile it truly is.  That realization sent me into unsteady ground.  I didn't feel like I was doing what I was put on this earth to do.  I didn't think I was being all that I could be, nor giving all that I could give. I wasn't excited about anything. I didn't feel much purpose nor did I have a drive towards anything meaningful; I was just going through the motions.

 I was missing that thing that puts a sparkle in your eyes.  Many of you might know what I'm talking about.  I'm not being ungrateful for what I have; I love my life, and my family is everything to me.  However I had to admit that my mother had never lost that sparkle, she is always on a mission to help someone, to make someones life easier and happier.

I understand now, that the missing piece of my puzzle had nothing to do with what I was missing for myself.  It had to do with me living my best life for the sake of making the world a better place by writing, hugging, loving, sharing and helping.   In that moment I began to challenge myself to reach beyond my comfort zone for the sake of serving.  Needless to say.... my sparkle is back :)