PAST MOTIVATIONS

Although I do my best not to complain about life, to accept things as they come and I do know that my reaction to what happens to me is more important than what actually happens. However I found myself in situations recently where I cry the famous “Oh God”.

Of all the lessons my late father taught me, one remains true every day. One day as I complained to him over the phone about how rough college life was, how badly I wanted to return home, he listened for all 15 minutes of my rambling and then unleash these famous phrase before he hung up in my face: “No matter how bad you’re having it, someone somewhere in the world is wishing he was in your shoes”.

This is true in almost every situation. The driver who has a flat tire is much better off than the person at a bus stop under the rain. The worker who is under paid is better off than the unemployed. And if we want to be really dramatic about this, try to complain to a parent who just lost their teenager daughter in accident how devastated you are about your pregnant teen.

The bible tells us about the story of Noah who had to build that large boat under God’s order. He was to get onboard with his wife, his children and close family members. Since God intended to destroy the earth totally, he also asked Noah to take 2 of each animal on board to assure reproduction after the storm. Now you can imagine that Noah’s ark was no where as large as a city. It must have been very tight quarters to co exist with all these animals. I can almost hear complaints from everybody about the foul smell and the noise. But it was much worse out there. The smell, the discomfort, the noise from the pigs and cows, the constant barking of the dogs, all of that were much better than the devastation going on outside.

Should you find yourself in tight quarters, in situation that is almost impossible to live with, think how bad it may be out there before you complain,

Try to adjust your attitude because "Man is only miserable so far as he thinks himself so."

Jacopo Sannazaro reminds us that we have almost complete control over our how we feel. Lots of things happen to us, but we can decide whether we will let them bring us down, and for how long. It's OK to feel down sometimes, by the way, as long as we recognize that's a choice we make.

Here’s a little contribution from a friend which I think packs a powerful message:

The road to success is not straight. There is a curve called Failure, a loop called Confusion, speed bumps called Friends, red lights called Enemies, caution lights called Family. You will have flats called Jobs. But, if you have a spare called
Determination, an engine called Perseverance, insurance called Faith, a driver called Jesus; you will make it to a place called Success.

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to what happens to you"

- Brian Dyson (CEO of Coca Cola Enterprises)

MOTIVATIONAL ARCHIVES:
Motivations March
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