Where is My Focus?

We all have had unfortunate events in our lives that can cast a shadow on our present moments. Marianne Williamson says that we need to focus on the possibilities of the present and future moments to create a more favorable outlook on life.

There is a tendency for people to focus on the tragedies and dark points in their lives. Something that has happened in the past seems to cast a shadow over any possible enjoyment we might experience in the future.

Instead of focusing on those not-so-good times, we’re better off being in the present moment and shining light on a brighter future.

Two examples from Biblical history illustrate this point. When the Jewish people were wandering for forty years in the desert, they went through many trials and tribulations. But eventually, they found the promised land and were able to transcend their plight. Instead of continuing to focus on the hardships they had faced for so many years, it was more conducive to dwell on the fact that had found the “land of milk and honey” and would be suffering no more.

The second example from the Bible is the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Jesus crucifixion was horrific and those who followed Him were hard-pressed not to focus on the tragedy that had occurred. But following his resurrection, there was much joy and celebration to be realized. Would it make any since to continue to dwell on the horrors of His death or to focus on His rebirth.

Yes, we as humans have hardships to endure in life. But if we allow these events to color our perspective, we may find ourselves reliving the horrid past many times over. We are better served to focus on being in the present moment and looking forward to the miracles that can occur in our lives.

David Lee

Daily Writing Prompt – April 1st

Daily writing prompt
What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like?
View all responses

I have a ritual that I do to begin each day. I have several meds that I take each day. I brush my teeth. I have several posts on social media that I’ve posted for quite a few years and I post those. I also have two games I play and post results for, Wordle and Connections.

On days when I’m not working, I go to the local coffee shop and get a bowl of oatmeal and a large cup of coffee. They pretty much know what I’m going to order each day because I’m a creature of habit. That is my daily routine.

David Lee

My New Favorite Song…

While I was at the local cafe’ for breakfast yesterday morning, I heard a somewhat familiar song playing on the intercom. I use the Shazam app on my phone to identify its title and artist and then proceeded to listen to it. The song and its lyrics really struck a chord with me. I shared it with a friend and all-told yesterday, I must have listened to it over forty times. I also looked up various versions on YouTube and share one of my favorites below.

https://youtu.be/jxiluPSmAF8?si=oahNF8Yc_uaYrnir

Lyrics

… Rows and floes of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
Looked at clouds that way

… But now they only block the sun
They rain and they snow on everyone
So many things I would have done
But clouds got in my way

… I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now
From up and down and still somehow
It’s cloud illusions I recall
I really don’t know clouds at all

… Moons and Junes and Ferris wheels
The dizzy dancing way that you feel
As every fairy tale comes real
I’ve looked at love that way

… But now it’s just another show
And you leave ’em laughing when you go
And if you care, don’t let them know
Don’t give yourself away

… I’ve looked at love from both sides now
From give and take and still somehow
It’s love’s illusions that I recall
I really don’t know love
I really don’t know love at all

… Tears and fears and feeling proud
To say, “I love you, ” right out loud
Dreams and schemes and circus crowds
I’ve looked at life that way

… Oh, but now old friends, they’re acting strange
And they shake their heads and they tell me that I’ve changed
Well, something’s lost, but something’s gained
In living every day

… I’ve looked at life from both sides now
From win and lose and still somehow
It’s life’s illusions I recall
I really don’t know life at all

… It’s life’s illusions that I recall
I really don’t know life
I really don’t know life at all

Source: LyricFind

Songwriters: Joni Mitchell

Both Sides Now lyrics © Reservoir Media Management, Inc

Another Daily Reading: Touchstones

We all carry it within us: supreme strength, the fullness of wisdom, unquenchable joy. It is never thwarted and cannot be destroyed. But it is hidden deep, which is what makes life a problem.
Huston Smith

How does a man lose touch with his strength, his wisdom, his joy? Perhaps it is in the nature of humanity. Our most profound qualities are hidden deep. They never go away, but we cannot always find them. There may be nothing wrong with ourselves as men when we lose touch. It doesn’t have to mean that we are “bad guys” for getting depressed or for feeling inadequate. Who doesn’t have that problem? It is the nature of life that we sometimes feel this way. This program helps us unearth the resources hidden within us.

When we cannot find those reassuring feelings of strength and wisdom and joy, we may think they are gone forever. We even doubt we ever had them or could have them again. But they are still there. They cannot be destroyed. And when we regain contact we know they have been with us all along.

I will have faith that the innermost places in me can never be destroyed.

From Touchstones: A Book of Daily Meditations for Men 

Daily Readings….

Meditation for the Day

Be calm, be true, be quiet. Do not get emotionally upset by anything that happens around you. Feel a deep, inner security in the goodness and purpose in the universe. Be true to your highest ideals. Do not let yourself slip back into the old ways of reacting. Stick to your spiritual guns. Be calm always. Do not talk back or defend yourself too much against accusation, whether false or true. Accept criticism as well as you accept praise. Only God can judge the real you.

Prayer for the Day

I pray that I may not be upset by the judgment of others. I pray that I may let God be the judge of the real me.

From Twenty-Four Hours a Day © 1975 by Hazelden Foundation

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Experiment

Experiment. Try something new. Try stepping out.

We have been held back too long. We have held ourselves back too long.

As children, many of us were deprived of the right to experiment. Many of us are depriving ourselves of the right to experiment and learn as adults.

Now is the time to experiment. It is an important part of recovery. Let yourself try things. Let yourself try something new. Yes, you will make mistakes. But from those mistakes, you can learn what your values are.

Some things we just won’t like. That’s good. Then we’ll know a little more about who we are and what we don’t like.

Some things we will like, they will work with our values. They will work with who we are, and we will discover something important and life enriching.

There is a quiet time in recovery, a time to stand still and heal, a time to give ourselves a cooling off time. This is a time of introspection and healing. It is an important time. We deal with our issues.

There also comes a time when it is equally important to experiment, to begin to test the water.

Recovery does not equal abstention from life. Recovery means learning to live and learning to live fully. Recovery means exploration, investigation, and experimentation.

Recovery means being done with the rigid, shame-based rules from the past, and formulating healthy values based on self-love, love for others, and living in harmony with this world.

Experiment. Try something new. Maybe you won’t like it. Maybe you’ll make a mistake. But maybe you will like it, and maybe you’ll discover something you love.

Today, I will give myself permission to experiment in life. I will stop rigidly holding myself back, and I will jump in when jumping in feels right. God, help me let go of my need to deprive myself of being alive.

From The Language of Letting Go by Melody Beattie ©1990, Hazelden Foundation.

There Comes a Time….

For forty-three years, I have been a classroom teacher in some sort or fashion. I spent twenty-nine years as a full-time teacher, most of which were in middle school classrooms. For the past fourteen years, since my retirement in 2010, I’ve been substitute teaching and filling in for teachers on an interim basis. There have been more than twenty of those interim posts. This past week, I’ve decided that it’s time for me to leave the classroom, at least for these interim positions. It’s definitely not an easy choice, but I know it’s time to say good-bye.