Trust 30 Day 14
But life isn't like that. It moves on. Focus on the wrong thing and the right things slip away. Kids grow up with or without a parent's help. Even the most patient spouses will not tolerate an absent mate forever. Distance can grow in any relationship--parents/kids, husband/wife, friends, and you/God.
Emerson says "...when you have life in yourself..." I have life in myself when I feel close to my kids. When they seek me out to show me something they've created (usually with duct tape) or a brain teaser they invented. I find life in myself when they find joy in life and eagerly share it with me. These things can be a distraction to the focus I have toward "my" goals. But "my" goals are meaningless without these things. I refuse to sacrifice my children or marriage on the altar of personal acheivement. Allowing myself to consistently be distracted by those I love has tangibly altered my vision for the future. I feel I'm not driven by blind ambition, I am willing to follow love and let the vision that we share unfold in front of us as we experience life together.
"When good is near you, when you have life in yourself, it is not by any known or accustomed way; you shall not discern the foot-prints of any other; you shall not see the face of man; you shall not hear any name; the way, the thought, the good, shall be wholly strange and new." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
“What alternative opportunities, interpretations and paths am I not seeing?”The things we have--cars, stereos, paychecks, job titles--ultimately don't matter. Even things that sound more noble, like publishing a book or earning a degree are ultimately worthless. They will all fade away. It seems most goals and visions we have in life not only revolve around these things that will fade, but we sacrifice the things that truly matter in order to acheive them. We relegate things like quality time with our kids, our marriage, and even our sprituality to "someday." Once we acheive "enough" we'll get back to that stuff. After all, the people that love us the most always be there, right?
But life isn't like that. It moves on. Focus on the wrong thing and the right things slip away. Kids grow up with or without a parent's help. Even the most patient spouses will not tolerate an absent mate forever. Distance can grow in any relationship--parents/kids, husband/wife, friends, and you/God.
Emerson says "...when you have life in yourself..." I have life in myself when I feel close to my kids. When they seek me out to show me something they've created (usually with duct tape) or a brain teaser they invented. I find life in myself when they find joy in life and eagerly share it with me. These things can be a distraction to the focus I have toward "my" goals. But "my" goals are meaningless without these things. I refuse to sacrifice my children or marriage on the altar of personal acheivement. Allowing myself to consistently be distracted by those I love has tangibly altered my vision for the future. I feel I'm not driven by blind ambition, I am willing to follow love and let the vision that we share unfold in front of us as we experience life together.
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