I can’t y’all. I just can’t let another day go by without pouring out what’s been on my heavy heart to share. Yesterday, I remember stating that I was just sooooooooooo tired of crying. It seems like I’ve been practically crying all week thus far . . . crying for peoples’ pain points, their hurts, their losses, their struggles . . .
It’s not that I’m personally going through so much turmoil and hardship in my own life or that I’m currently battling something larger-than-life. But, I feel a sadness for some of the tough situations people go through in life . . . just in general. You know? The crying I’ve been doing has a lot to do with a myriad of some truly tragic events that have or that are continuing to take place the world over. And, it’s really hard to wrap my head around why certain events that just rip at your heart — why they take place sometimes.
But, let me get back to the crying. I’m actually glad that I’ve been doing so much of it this week. Crying for someone other than myself is a good thing; it shows I feel empathy and that I have a human connection with others. I never want to lose the ability to cry. I never want to become so hard-hearted and desensitized to another person’s pain that I can’t show the emotion to express how much I care.
I fully intended to do a “The Art of People Business” segment for today — a continuation of the discussion on comparing oneself to another. But, it’ll have to get tucked away for another day, because I feel like this moment is a time to reflect about things that are truly important in life.
You know those things (the things in life that matter the most) like wrapping your arms around the people you love, remembering to value relationships and the people around you, finding the time and effort to cultivate and nourish those relationships, giving of yourself to be a support to someone else, and determining to simply be present (to just be there) to show humanity.
And you know, life can be so fleeting and it’s something that we should never take for granted. The saying goes, “here today and gone tomorrow” or actually “here today and gone today”. And, we tend to spend way too much time and energy and give way too much attention to: superficial things, petty squabbles, grudges we hold, and things we put up as important when they’re considerably less important than the people in our lives and the values we hold dear as well as life itself.
When push comes to shove, the petty things we obsess over quickly lose their significance when tragic things happen in life. Such occasions make you realize that the frivolous stuff just doesn’t matter as much. You know? It’s kind of like the things you do on this earth that live in you and live in other people and make a difference in peoples’ lives are the things that are lasting and can travel generations and influence people even after you’re gone off the face of the earth.
So, my thing today is that we should be living a life of appreciation for what we’ve been given. Some of us have gone through some really horrific things in our lives and we may even be going through some extreme circumstances right now — things that we feel that most people couldn’t possibly relate to or will ever have to go through in their lives.
I don’t personally know what any other person has truly gone through in his or her life. How could I? I’m not that person. You only fully know you. But, the human experience says that, even though I don’t know you personally, I can still have the ability to feel your sorrow, your hurt, your pain, when you feel lost, and when you’re reaching out for help or needing a helping hand. It’s that human connection that should connect us all in some way or another.
Unfortunately, there are some people that don’t feel that connection. They can go around hurting people without remorse or witness people get hurt, have no type of heart tug about it, be happy it wasn’t them, and go about their merry way. But I would venture to say that the majority of the human race can feel for someone (you don’t even know) who’s going through a little something (or maybe a great, big something).
I’ll say this much: even in the most trying of times or most difficult of times or the worst of circumstances, if you’re alive today to utter a word, to breathe a breath, and to think a thought, be thankful. I realize that life can be hard sometimes, but at least you have today to take that day and work to turn things around, reach out for help from someone that you know will be there for you, to be a help to someone that’s in need, to show that human connection is alive and well. You have another opportunity to do something. Some people didn’t wake up this morning with such a gift.
One day this week, I remember dropping my son, Little Man, off at the school bus stop one morning and was commenting on how dreary, cold, and wet the day already was. It had snowed the night before and the cold temps froze some of that wetness over. And as the words about the weather were coming out of my mouth, I had to stop a moment and recognize that I could very easily slip into a complaining mode.
So, I quickly checked the direction my conversation was going and proceeded to thank God for the chance to witness such a dreary, cold, and wet day. In taking on an attitude of gratitude for life, it puts a cold weather day into perspective. I may not like being cold, but I can be grateful for the fact that I can still experience what cold feels like. I’m in the land of the living.
In the whole scheme of things, I wanted to leave you with a little nugget. Keeping to my schedule of doing a “The Art of People Business” article today just doesn’t matter. What was weighing heavily on my heart is what truly matters to me right now. And hopefully it’s speaking to you in some way as well.
What makes us so unique as human beings is the ability to feel — to feel for people we don’t even know or have some type of personal relationship with. What we universally share is that human connection. And, I don’t ever want to lose that.
I think that’s why I love blogging so much. I get to share thoughts with people that I may never get to meet in my lifetime, but can still connect with through my words and the feelings and emotions behind those words. So, thanks so much for letting me reflect on life with you. I appreciate you reading this through to the end. What a refreshingly therapeutic cleanse. I truly feel better and blessed for doing this.
Again, life is fleeting, life is fragile, and life is short. It’s to be highly valued each and every day it’s given to you and is not to be taken for granted. Be around the ones you love. Hold them tight and keep them close to you. Be an encouragement for others and allow yourself to be encouraged. Until next time . . .
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