Choose Life-

I have recently been watching a lot of Create TV. They have some programs on woodworking which I have wanted to see. Also some stuff on sewing, knitting, and crocheting. Ahem.  One recent program, indeed one I just saw for the first time today, is Growing Bolder. It is about crafting attitude, rather than wood or fiber products. The content of this program is much along the lines of my own thinking in recent years. The format is pleasant, and the programming is upbeat and positive. Nothing wrong with that.

The idea of finding and following my dream has been at the front of my thinking for quite some time. My personal ideals are such that following a path of responsibility is very important. I learned that there are dangers along that path. One is that there are many more needs out there than any single human can meet. Another is that those in need are not always careful of those meeting their needs. You can be sucked dry, and your life can become empty and meaningless even on a path of responsibility.

The answer to that is not to turn to a life of selfishness, at least for most people. I don't think that those who gravitate to a life of responsibility would easily succumb to selfishness, anyway. It is a matter of stewardship, of managing your self well so that you can fulfill your responsibilities. Selfless responsibility can stifle and even kill dreams, and dreams are what make us truly alive.

For those who are bound by responsibility for the diseased and infirm, the mentally ill and those who are ungracefully aged, the challenge of finding a dream and pursuing it is seemingly impossible. It is about this challenge that I have been doing a lot of thinking. How can one find their dream while carrying the burdens of others? Too often they struggle just to evade despair, even as they "do the right thing."

For me it was necessary to learn to fit the pursuit of the dream into the fulfillment of responsibilities. I do not think I am unique in this. Others must also find the time and resources to reach for the dream. There are some who are so driven by their dream that they shun responsibilities and leave dependents abandoned along the  wayside. Most of us can't do this, and that is good. Yet to abandon dreams is to abandon life.

I would love to have a master program to make it easier for everyone to find and pursue their dreams. I do not. There are too many twists and turns to life and the human psyche for me to answer the problem other than to say, 'choose life.' Encourage others to do the same. Throw a life ring to those drowning in despair, but don't let them pull you in with them. Always choose life.

Keep your eyes open. Helping others to achieve their dream might just enhance your own. Lift someone else's burden, from time to time, according to your own skills and desires. Even someone as socially challenged as I am can find a place to lend a hand, from time to time. Every once in a while, do something.

If you are burdened, let others help. Pride can be an awfully heavy thing to carry around. Just as there is no shame in helping others, there is no shame in letting them help. Sometimes it can be a great gift, letting others give.

Life is made up of little things. Choose life.