“The purpose of life is to discover your gift; the work of life is to develop it; and the meaning of life is to give your gift away” said David Viscott.
I have written a lot lately about the importance of purpose in life and how it dwindles with age.
We are constantly evolving, finding relevance and meaning to live a life aligned to what is important to us. However, for me, this benchmark has been difficult to follow because I have not been blessed with significant talent or skills, making the discovery of any unique gift an almost impossible task.
An insular slow learner and day dreamer in my fledgling years, the school system was not geared to wait for ADHD and borderline bipolar kids like me to catch up. The result being that I was on my own to learn the hard way -- by trial and error -- and finding it necessary at times to take a step back in order to take a future step forward in what turned out to be several careers, multiple jobs and callings from a higher authority.
Out of necessity I became a sponge for knowledge as I matured, only in my own way and at my own speed. That has not changed, even to this day. As I was exposed to more and more information in the self-education process and gained valuable experience, my perspective naturally changed thus enabling a redefined and purposeful path and humbly writing about it as I went along as a form of personal reinforcement and for what it was worth to friends and readers.
Out of necessity I became a sponge for knowledge as I matured, only in my own way and at my own speed. That has not changed, even to this day. As I was exposed to more and more information in the self-education process and gained valuable experience, my perspective naturally changed thus enabling a redefined and purposeful path and humbly writing about it as I went along as a form of personal reinforcement and for what it was worth to friends and readers.
Because my aim was high in tackling certain challenges, it was not unusual to find myself in over my head with a requirement to call on resourcefulness in order to bail myself out. It is a way of life for a creative individual treading close to the edge.
I would agree, almost too little to late, that purpose is not a destination but the life you choose to live. Awareness is an important part of this. If, like me, you are not aware of your unique gifts, or the lack of same, you may believe you have nothing to special to share (give). Resultingly, you will have difficulty finding that meaning of life in which to share what you do have to offer the world.
Bottom line? We must know that our presence in this life is important, that we have a unique (God-given) purpose and perspective which is the truth of who we are...Your purpose is your authentic path to being the best that you are here to be.
The best advise I ever gleaned was to invest in myself, my health and wellbeing. This is listening to intuition, mind and body; attending to physical, emotional, social and spiritual wellbeing, as this is the enabler to living a purposeful life.
So, backing up just a little, to this day I continue to struggle with true purpose and the disturbing acknowledgement that I have lacked sufficient ability to make any meaningful contribution to society...and when I've tried I fell short of expectations, often times miserably.
I would agree, almost too little to late, that purpose is not a destination but the life you choose to live. Awareness is an important part of this. If, like me, you are not aware of your unique gifts, or the lack of same, you may believe you have nothing to special to share (give). Resultingly, you will have difficulty finding that meaning of life in which to share what you do have to offer the world.
Bottom line? We must know that our presence in this life is important, that we have a unique (God-given) purpose and perspective which is the truth of who we are...Your purpose is your authentic path to being the best that you are here to be.
The best advise I ever gleaned was to invest in myself, my health and wellbeing. This is listening to intuition, mind and body; attending to physical, emotional, social and spiritual wellbeing, as this is the enabler to living a purposeful life.
So, backing up just a little, to this day I continue to struggle with true purpose and the disturbing acknowledgement that I have lacked sufficient ability to make any meaningful contribution to society...and when I've tried I fell short of expectations, often times miserably.
I have been hard on myself in thinking that as time runs out I no longer have a purpose in living, if in fact I ever had one that was clearly defined -- outside of caring for two late wives and raising a family.
It wasn't until this morning when finishing up that good-to-the-last-drop coffee that I wrote about in a recent Wrights Lane post, that the thought came to me (God often communicates through the thought process): "Stop thinking about your purpose in life...Stop trying to define it. You have already achieved your purpose, whether you realized it or not. You used what you had at your disposal in the first 83 years of your life in order to get where you are now. That in itself served your purpose. Now take what time you have left to enjoy the fruits of your labor -- and be at peace, knowing that as imperfect as you think you may have been, you gave the best of what you had most of the time. That was your purpose!"
It wasn't until this morning when finishing up that good-to-the-last-drop coffee that I wrote about in a recent Wrights Lane post, that the thought came to me (God often communicates through the thought process): "Stop thinking about your purpose in life...Stop trying to define it. You have already achieved your purpose, whether you realized it or not. You used what you had at your disposal in the first 83 years of your life in order to get where you are now. That in itself served your purpose. Now take what time you have left to enjoy the fruits of your labor -- and be at peace, knowing that as imperfect as you think you may have been, you gave the best of what you had most of the time. That was your purpose!"
Giving the best of what I had most of the time...and, in the end, being judged on merit.
Know what? In retrospect, I could have always done better, but I'll settle for the best I had to offer at the time. No charge!
If there was a price to pay, I picked up the tab.
NOTE TO READER: In the next day or two I will publish a post explaining my coincidental introduction to "The Fool" as the result of a Tarot Card reading. It is all about taking a leap of faith, keeping your eyes on the prize and being mindful of what inner truth really is. I found it eerily relevant, and I think you will too.
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