A New Humility

This morning I awake with a new humility. Don't ask why - just that today I look at the world a little bit differently. Maybe I am reminded that life is precious. That in life you get thrown curve balls when you were least expecting it. Life tests us. Oh life can be unfair. The challenges, the adversities that we face. I know I'm not the only one.

I was looking through one of my books of quotations - and the pertinent one for today is: "What does not destroy me, makes me strong." by Friedrich Nietzsche. Well we've all heard that quote said in different ways. What doesn't kill me only makes me stronger. I usually don't like that saying. It's like a way of rationalizing the really bad things that happen in our lives. But what other way is there to look at it. If we don't stay positive, then life will get the best of us. What other way is there to be - other than positive? Life is better when you have a positive outlook. There's crappy things happening all the time around the world - are we just going to frown and focus on the negative? Or are we going to find the positive? The silver lining behind the cloud?

I choose the positive. God knows I've had my share of hardships in life, and I'm not trying to get pity about that. Life is just interesting that way. You think you have it all planned out - and bam, life throws you a curve ball, that sweeps the floor from underneath you. Your world comes crashing down. You ask why to the universe? Why me? And you do not get an answer, not right away anyway.

You try to get Buddhist about it. You remind yourself that you chose this life before you were even born. You chose this life path and journey for the lessons you would learn, for the opportunity your soul would have to become even more enlightened. To grow on it's path of enlightenment. Of this world, you are not. You have to remind yourself, that your time on this planet is fleeting. Remember what's important. What's truly important. Living a good life. Treating other people with kindness and respect. Not judging people. You don't know what it's like to walk in their shoes. You can't judge a book by its cover.

And all this is fine and dandy. You also have to give yourself permission to be human, to be scared. To be frightened, and sad. It's okay. Cry, you feel better afterwards. It's a cleansing of the soul. Isn't that what you read once about a particular American Indian tribe? You don't remember. But you know it must be true.