Suppose

In life, there are only two things to worry about, if you are well or if you are sick. If you are well, nothing to worry about.

If you are sick, two things to worry about, if you live or if you die. If you live, nothing to worry about. If you die, two things to worry about, if you go up or if you go down. If you go up, nothing to worry about. If you go down, you will be so busy shaking hands with old friends you won’t have time to worry.

This philosophy hails from some rock in the middle of the North Atlantic that shall remain nameless should they sound like know-all’s (to some, this philosophy sounds like the people from this rock are completely OFF their rockers).

Suppose…

Suppose you experience a time of illness and you are unable to work.  Suppose little Jimmy falls down that slide head first.  Suppose the doctor calls about some red flags after your mammogram.  Suppose, after all that you have been through, your hopes are going to end in failure. Suppose there is no life after this.  Suppose I cannot afford college for the children in 5 years. Suppose there is no God. Suppose there is a God; why did God choose for us this existence? Suppose I could figure a better one? Or suppose…

Are you Miserable Yet? 

This supposin’ can sure make you miserable, can’t it?  At times we adults really want to have that childlike faith where we know that God, mom or dad… Someone… will provide for us and hold us close.  We desire the reassurances that we are protected.  It can be difficult to not be afraid at times.  And, you know as well as I, feelings of despair, worry and hopelessness drag us down in our effectiveness and usefulness.

I hardly can watch that commercial on TV for depression.  When you are discouraged, you feel defeated and you feel of no service to others, let alone yourself, at least for a while.  Importantly, it also breaks the bond with your family, your work and those things/people that matter. 

WE LIVE IN A TERRIBLE STATE OF ANXETY, CONSTANTLY FRETTING OVER THE CONCERNS OF LIFE. 

And I know the causes of anxiety are various… money, or the lack thereof; anxiety is caused by hard economic times, sickness, death and getting older seems to be a culprit. People hate grey skies and rain, snow – weather affects many.  Who doesn’t get down and out occasionally?  But, what we are unwilling to confront is that we have MORE time, money and resources than ever before and that is where the issues lay.  Most of us are walking around blind also to the gifts that we have been given until we see the problems others have endured.

DEPT OF MEANING 

No, the hole within is not our wallets, lack of time and tummies, perhaps it is our soul.

With all of this time, we worry about things our grandparents never had time to worry about (and thus didn’t consider worthy of fret). We find ourselves rather clever to have iPhones and internet at the ready; but yet our grandparents knew more (you can doubt the validity perhaps) about the human soul.

OH LIGHTEN UP! 

Yes, “don’t worry, be happy” is the mantra and it would be a great one if the one saying it was urging you to trust that God has a plan, and you should stop trying to dictate the plan. But, so very often, it comes from the spiritually inebriated that have no plan, no vision; only platitudes and cliché.

“Lighten up!” “Everything happens for a reason.”  Do the platitudes help?

I can be a right pain.  Blessed with a sunny attitude most of the time, I’m fond of saying, ‘gosh, aren’t we all so lucky?!?!’  You know the A type personality where we tell you to suck it up (if you are a certain age, mind you) and offer 40 ways to multitask your way through it…  It really doesn’t help?  The older I get, the less I say. My husband disagrees. 

I have found that any of the above, seldom helps. My husband disagrees again! He says that every little bit of sunshine helps (when genuine).

WHAT GOOD HAS WORRYING EVER ACCOMPLISHED? 

Excessive worrying has never accomplished much.  It has never made us stronger, or provided anyone an escape out of our anxiety or confusion. Or does it? New research says that those that trend toward “slightly neurotic” live longer because they stay concerned and worried about having a purpose in life, as well as quickly addressing health concerns. So; apparently we’ll shoot for a "healthy neurotic" -- still anxious, but with enough self-discipline to control for associated bad behaviors like drinking, smoking, and overeating.  

I once read -- It is a sign of weakness to always worry and fret, question everything and mistrust everyone.  On the other hand, a relative once commented that without all the worry and thoughtful preparation and anxiety, his business would have certainly flopped!   WELL!  Weakness??! Well, that’s enough for me to not even begin with a faint desire to complain and be discontent. 

SIEVED FLOUR TAINTS EVERYONE IN YOUR FAMILY

Despite our attempts, the flour we sieve into a bowl usually does seem to get on other parts of the kitchen, in the surrounding area, in the drawers, on the floor – it is the same with stress and your sense of worry.  Those around you always get the  flour dust. They do not escape your affected/tainted heavy & troubled heart. And yet without concern and worry, nobody would have ever invented the sieve that sifts the flour!

JEWELS ARE IN ROUGH PACKAGES

Out of many conversations with cancer survivors, I’ve discovered that folks who seem to have endured so much, having so many trials, have discovered that the trials themselves have proved to be great opportunities. We only grow through suffering.  And yet we seem to try our hardest to avoid it and keep it far from our children. Odd…

I suppose if we look back on our stresses, anxieties, personal tragedy’s; this is part of our journey and makes us more compassionate to others.  The “wise” are almost always those that have experienced much in ‘practice’ and understanding vs. those that have experienced much in ‘theory’ and empathize with little. And with my short-sightness, I hope to escape without too many hard blows and bloody scars myself, but know no other path toward wisdom. So very hard to embrace pain and suffering when pleasure feels so good.

Ruminating is a Root of Devilment

The World Health Organization recently stated that by 2030, mental health issues will form the biggest burden on health care resources including heart conditions and cancer. Just watch TV nowadays and almost every ad has to do with some facet of mental health (beer & socializing, Viagra & men, Cymbalta & depression, Imitrex & migraines, weight loss boondoggles et al).

The practice of the state of mindfulness has been helpful to some suffering from stress, feeling overburdened, and depression.  It is the art of not dwelling on negative memories and feelings; while having a clear purpose in life. Perhaps even just ONE.

Neuroscience says that when people feel stressed, the part of the brain associated with “fight or flight” – the amygdala – fires up, reducing the brain’s ability to cope.  Therefore we fixate on the immediate plethora of problems rather than thinking strategically of ONE. 

Gregory of Nyssa some 1,700 years ago said it like this, “Let us imagine a stream flowing from a spring and branching out at random into different channels. Now, so long as it flows this way it will be entirely useless for the cultivation of the soul.

Its waters are spread out too much… But if we could collect these wanderings and widely scattered channels into ONE single stream, we would have a full and compact water flow which would be useful for the many needs of life.

So too, I think of the human mind. If it spreads itself out in all directions, constantly flowing out and dispersing to whatever pleases the senses, it will never have any notable force in its progress towards the true Good.”

Head Overload …WHAT ALLOWS YOU TO FOCUS ON THE PRESENT

What clears your head of information overload?? The pills, chanting, cross-legged spirituality involvement, deep belly–breathing, taster sessions, going to church, journaling…

 It seems like we do have to be more disciplined in every aspect of our lives-which includes complaining (even when it may be warranted) or giving into jealousy or assuming anyone is jealous of you. 

But, it is all too easy to let grumbling blossom, ripen and be a more self-satisfying person...  Do you know people that live in a constant state of anxiety?  Do the lines on their face, the tone of their voice, the negative attitude, and the lack of joy in their spirit give you an indication of their well-being?   Is it you? 

I knew of a lady like this growing up and I was amazed she lived well into her 90’s.  All along I imagined that she must be killing herself with the misery.  She was always miserable and unpredictable.  So, her family lived like a see-saw life with the flour dust.   At the time I did not realize she was an expert in dumping all of her stresses and worries on to her grown daughters and son.  She lived long but in the end, fought death with no sweet embrace of anything.

Everything can be taken from a man or woman but one thing: the last of the human freedoms is to choose ones attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.  This was Victor Frankl’ stance in the advancement of oppressing days.