MAKING LIFE COUNT!
How would you feel if you woke up one morning only to find
that you are 70 years old with so many regrets?
Well too many people engage in mindless indulgences they call
career or work, they walk around the streets with little or no clue why they
exist! Some even work in banks, government organizations and private
enterprises, yet they have no clue what they should be doing or why they are
doing what they are doing. They do this day in day out, year in year out,
without the barest feel of fulfillment or even joy, only to find out too late that
they would rather have done something else or done it a different way.
When I was much
younger, I, like many of you, used to ask my parents so many questions ranging
from intelligent to not so intelligent ones like; why do I have to brush my
teeth? Why is the moon full tonight? Why are there just 26 alphabets? … Well
that is one of the ways we learn. However, it also gives us a sense of purpose,
in that, now, It just comes naturally to me, I know exactly why I should brush
my teeth and the consequences of not brushing, hence I don’t need to be cajoled
or pampered to do so.
Now brushing ones teeth is just a minute part of life, if we think
it is important for kids to know the essence of brushing, how much more a full
life. Everyone should understand that there is an innate ability, a gift, an
inward yearning screaming on the inside, hoping to find expression, one that
could make a huge difference in life, however, often times than not, we allow
fear, insecurities, status quo, friends and even family to keep it mute until
it no longer has a voice and maybe dies eventually.
Why stick your nose in a professional program just because
it’s what your parents expect or burry your head in a job just because you need
to measure up with your friends when truly, you ought to and would rather be
elsewhere. Well this is what John F Kennedy has to say to you “efforts and
courage are not enough without purpose and direction”. Stop wasting that
precious life; every moment counts for that bit of purpose that is achieved. Besides,
every second that goes by, is gone forever. Don’t just get a job done, get YOUR job done.
Don’t just live life, make it count!
I know of a sweet lady, who is so passionate about kids, she
left the office to a class room at a time when almost everyone wanted to be in
the office. When asked why, she said “at the office, I just feel like I’m
wasting away but here, I’m happy”. She didn’t think about the comfort she forfeited
or what people would say, and I can tell you that even her children were not
happy at first until they found out it was an issue of purpose. Today, she
knows that at retirement, she would have no regrets.
My point; there is nothing like knowing what you are doing
and doing it because you know it’s what you should be doing, something you are
happy doing and you are making positive impart doing. Now that is called a life
of purpose.
So the next time you think you have a life just because you
earn a wage, have a roof over your head and can help yourself, remember that
every Tom, Dick and Harry can do that. The next time you think you have a life
just because you bore kids, remember that even goats bear kids. Life is empty
without purpose. Learn to ask yourself real questions; who am I? What do I want?
How can I contribute to life without feeling so bothered? That might spur you
into finding purpose.
Imagine if everyone is doing what they ought to be doing,
what they enjoy doing…there would be so much happiness in the atmosphere, you wouldn’t
know the spelling of strife or wrath. I know change is a lot, having a paradigm
shift is enormous, but think about the benefits so that when you clock 70, you
would be just satisfied and happy as though you had a full life ahead of you.
Nothing, I mean nothing, not money, not friends, not family
is worth discarding purpose for. However, on the path of purpose, you will gain
all these and more, genuinely. Making your life count must be deliberate, it’s not
a bucket of ice cream, I must say, but the fruits are beautiful, sweet, and
long lasting. Don’t trade it for anything.
Finally, in
the words of Srikumar Rao, “ I believe that if you don't derive a deep sense of
purpose from what you do, if you don't come radiantly alive several times a
day, if you don't feel deeply grateful at the tremendous good fortune that has
been bestowed on you, then you are wasting your life. And life is too short to
waste”! Make your life count, yes, you can!