Continuing thoughts on ‘tomorrow’, I’m thinking about responses impacting our circumstances or what happens to us. I’ve long since told my children that how they behave helps pave the way for their future experiences and, when they were younger they would think it was either a little scary or that I was exaggerating but I’ve been inspired by the famous beatitudes in the Bible.
We often look to the end result we want and from there we navigate to ‘how to’ bring that result home, for example – if we want fulfilment and contentment we will look for the things we think will satisfy us whether they be people, things or cultivating the right circumstances. If we want to have and enjoy all that this earth and life have to offer we work at grabbing life in terms of success and happiness with both hands, after all life is short.
The beatitudes suggest a different more measured approach. A kind of upside down/back to front way of moving forward. They suggest that satisfaction comes from doing things with a focus on giving rather than getting, a cause and effect way, rather than the grabbing life with both hands way. They suggest that satisfaction comes from being patient, gentle and restrained rather than ‘grabby’ or ‘pushy’.
In the Caribbean they say ‘grabilicious’ which means having motives, designs or attitudes focused on getting things for yourself. I think that sums up misguided motives perfectly. We can sometimes be this way without really tuning into the fact that we have this going on simply because life requires that we are not weak and pushovers.
For me, the beatitudes suggest that being still, taking time and living on and with purpose bear better and more significant fruit than running full pelt towards getting our desires fulfilled. There’s nothing wrong with working towards our goals, having goals and moving towards them is a good thing but if our focus is on moving forward thoughtfully, reflectively and kindly, more of a considerate kind of living we will feel better. Less anxious, less stressed, less crabby, less selfish. After all we are doing life together and can we truly be happy if we don’t consider how our ‘gain’ affects others? Writing this has helped me mentally take a step back and consider how I’m living and whether my stresses are down to some of my own priorities and values.
As I Was Thinking 