How to enjoy the simple things in life
What does it mean to love as you only live once and then live as you only love once? Well, the thoughts and approaches to answering this set of questions are endless to say the least. However, I am going to try to take a bit of a personal approach and share my thoughts.
Life is so precious for many reasons. Regardless of our belief system, we tend to place a high value on life itself and are often challenged with the balance between living and existing. The YOLO (You Only Live/Love Once) anagram has become the rallying cry of baby-boomers and millennials alike in their quest to get the most out of our lives and experiences. Yet when it comes to love, we seem to oscillate somewhere between groping our way in the dark or just hoping and hoping that the love of our life will fall for us. (Remember, first hand experience is my main reference… ) So the challenge is to break the cycle, but at the same time not feel like the “Charge of the Light Brigade”… Well, good luck with that ! The hard truth is that there are no guarantees in life. There is no secret formula that ensures success and the proverbial happily ever after.
What we do have is attitude and choice. We have the ability to choose not to be victims of our condition and therefore adapt an attitude of optimistic confidence in the life we live and the choices we make. I know, it sounds great when we read it or hear “someone else” tell us how it worked for them. Believe me I know. However, I believe this is the time when we need to challenge ourselves to break the cycle, turn the corner, come out of the dark, or move on. However you want to think about it, but we have to recognize our moments of truth… and be faithful to them!
In closing, I will offer my own process for your consideration. I consider myself a bit optimistic at heart, as well as a bit romantic in my ideas. Therefore, I will offer some of my favorite poetry as my mantras in this process. The first is my “attitude” mantra. This is reflected in the poem “Invictus”: “I am the Captain of my ship… the owner of my Soul”. When it comes to my “choice/decision” mantra. I look at the “Serenity Prayer”: “the Wisdom to know the Difference”. Lastly, I have a poem that really ties it all together for me. This is the “If” poem: “fill the relentless minute, with sixty seconds of distance traveled… Yours is the Earth and all that is in it”… That is my approach to life and my attempt to. ..” Love like you only live once” – “Live like you only love once!”