Tuesday, October 4, 2016

On Doing What is at Hand


     

No matter what may come into our lives…be it serious tragedies or exciting breakthroughs…there will always be a certain amount of “everyday-ness” that is before us. There will be people, things and circumstances that need our attention, perhaps as established routines, perhaps as introductions we had not expected. Still, bottom line, they are ours to deal with. We can anticipate them; we can resent them; we can even blow them off for a time, but they stand before us as what is at hand.


Do them and be done....

The smart money says: Do them, and be done with them. I knew a vibrant lady who lived her long life doing exactly that, doing what was at hand. In fact as the end of her life began to appear before her, her trusted way of living her life once again assisted her as she said, “Well, let’s get on with it!”, and settled herself into her own passing, thus bringing her efficiency and peace to all who loved her.

Avoidance of responsibilities...

What is it that sometimes keeps us from doing what is ours to do? Fear, perhaps, of not showing up well? Concerns about entanglements? Avoidance of responsibilities? It matters little because, like mushrooms blooming after a good rain, they still continue to march before us. So we might as well care for the loved one who needs us; pay the bills that need action; get regular massages, or whatever it is that needs attention. There are small and large benefits that always follow after…from great satisfaction upon completions to small, sweet awarenesses that our love is at hand to give.

Dents, folds and wrinkles...

Turns out that the height, breadth and roundness of our lives do not necessarily come about only through the big, explosive deals but also through the little, cumulative deals we fulfill. It could be that great lives are not constituted only through toothy smiles and publicity shots but also by the dents, folds and wrinkles accumulated by the very acts of living.

More Essays About Everything is now available on Amazon
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You might also enjoy "On Having Less"

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