Didn’t think I would be back so quickly but I am. Lately I really have had a whole collection of things I’ve wanted to share but the timing or situation hasn’t been right. So this morning, despite having about 2,000 pounds of coin to count and roll, which I’m sure I’ll have tons of help to tackle, and before I head out of town for a couple of hours to speak to a youth leadership group I figured I would make the time to throw some more of what’s inside me, at you.
In relation to last night’s message, and this mornings as well, I want to clarify some of where I am. As this is my second time working myself back from a Transplant I am finding that many of the experiences are the same. Each Transplant was surrounded by a time of relative removal from my regular world, far less if any socializing, reduced energy, lots of sickness and pain, many days and hours to be by myself and with close friends and family. Both times as my energy has returned and I have begun to rebuild all of those things change, they are all still present just not in the same way.
As my energy increases many of the experiences that I used to have consistently now become within reach. I can go out for lunch with a buddy, I can go for a walk rain or shine, I can resume some work related activities, the catch is that all of these things take energy. And while I’m rebuilding, and even when we are all healthy, we only have so much energy. The complicating factors for me is that I have a natural tendency to want to do things all the time, I love to be in motion “living and loving life” as I would say, and when I have an extended period of time away from my “motion” that natural tendency seems to increase.
Fortunately, as I mentioned last night, during my first Cancer Challenge I really had an extended time away from what we would call normal, and that really helped me learn the lesson and importance of balance. So now that I am rebuilding and re-entering many parts of the world that I haven’t been in for a while I’m better able to keep a hold of myself, of my natural tendency, of my ambition. And I feel that that lesson is one of the most important I have learned, and it also relates into my other thoughts of today, which is happiness.
Because to me happiness comes from understanding what our personal and professional goals are, it comes from understanding what we want from our day and our life, and the only true way we can know those things is to know ourselves. Once we are aware of our wants, needs, priorities, then I feel we will be much more effective in attaining them. The Challenge I find, and I find this virtually every week, is looking too far down the road, focusing too much on my goals of tomorrow and the next day, and not enough on the goals of today, which for me are my title – Happiness and Balance.
I love to forward think, plan ahead, develop strategy, in fact I think it is where my mind works best, but if I am always thinking and living in tomorrow it is very tough to enjoy today. Any of you who have read “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff” may remember the line, “there’s no way to happiness, happiness is the way”, I think I wrote it a few messages ago. I fully believe that statement. Happiness is like Life, it is not a destination it is a Journey, a Journey that has many external elements but it really all happens inside. Happiness, like so many things in life, comes from the inside out.
So as I continue my process of rebuilding, resuming some of my play and work that I have missed, and planning my approach to the rest of my life I am making the effort and learning that my priorities of happiness and balance are solid, they are Challenging to maintain sometimes, but most things worth having come Challenge at some time or another. And as you may know Challenge is something I love, whether I have personally selected it, or whether it is unexpected, I have learned that getting up for the Challenges of life is one of the most important things we can do. Especially when they further the Journey inside.
Have a Super Duper Day.
Always…
Live Life. Love Life.
Geoff
