Thursday, June 05, 2008

Living A Zestful Life

Often after the death of a friend or family member, especially when the death is tragic and without warning, it is very common to make a promise to oneself to live better and to appreciate life more. We do this with the best of intentions and pure hearts. As time goes by and the sadness is less intense, we forget our promises and soon we are back to our former ways of living. It's like most every other promise we make to ourselves. We start out strong and then we lose our resolve. The realities of life are often challenging. Our relationships are not everything we hoped for or need, our jobs make us crazy, we don't understand our parents or our children, we're living from payday to payday, and our obligations and responsibilities come from all directions and seem to pull us apart at times. In the midst of all this how do we really renew or begin a life that is full of zest? There are no easy answers but there are things we can do. First of all, we all have problems and challenges. Very, very few people have a truly easy life. Much of life is a matter of attitude. Attitude is a matter of choice. Many of the challenges I listed above would apply to me, in addition to others, but I choose to be happy. Even when life sucks...and it sometimes does...I look for a reason to be grateful. Gratitude keeps me happy. I think many young people are sad because they have not learned to be grateful. I am sad over the death of my friend but I am also grateful because I learned after his death that I was one of the last people he thought about. His brother called and shared this with me. I was truly touched. I could not save him but I had made a difference in his life and that gives me some peace. Of course, gratitude doesn't always have to be about big stuff. It is often the small and little things for which I am most grateful. So, in spite of the challenge and difficulty of always having a zest for living...I get tired of it all, too, sometimes...I will continue to choose happiness and gratitude to guide my life.

No comments: