Sometimes, when I try to write, I get really distracted by everyone else's words. Aka upon beginning this post, I've ready four articles, unintentionally (but sorta intentionally) stumbling upon all of them.
I tell you what, college sucks. I've been drowning lately. Too much work, too many papers, lots of quizzes, more than two midterms, exams, and random space-filling assignments. In addition to that, I've been navigating the waters of people. Which is much easier said than done.
Someone recently gave me this nugget of advice: try to see the forest more and the trees less.
Jesus works in some really real ways. It's very interesting to me how people that don't know you terribly well and quite frankly, don't think they have you figured out, can say little random things that get your gears seriously turning.
All day, I've been thinking about that, about the trees. I think the same can be said about oceans. If we choose to focus on each individual wave, there isn't an abundant amount of beauty in that. But entire seas have captivated us for centuries. Or fields. A 1x1 patch of grass with one dandelion isn't so significant in comparison a mile wide field of dandelions.
I firmly believe that all parts of our lives, maybe even life itself, are/is based on the theory of perspective. That it really is all about how you see things, how you choose to see things, and how that choice runs its course through our bodies, minds, and hearts. Newton's third law says that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. If this is true, which we know it is, we know that every decision we make has a consequence. Every perspective that we choose to take has a reaction. The way we choose to see has lasting effects on the lives we (indirectly and sometimes directly) choose to live. Perspective has the power to make you or break you. And it will do both when fitting.
Lately, my perspective has been pretty jacked up. I'm happy and I'm hopeful, but I also suck at being content sometimes. I think that that is the reason that my head is really attracted to stress and anxiety. My perspective is all out of whack because I choose to look at the individual trees instead of the forest. There's beauty in the forest, but I promise you that you won't see it until you learn to see the gracefulness, beauty, and intricate pattern of the forest.
One of my favorite bloggers ever, Lindsey Mead (A Design So Vast) said this: "almost all suffering comes from our attachment to how we thought it was going to be." We choose the perspective that most identifies with how we want for it to be. I'm thankful that that doesn't always work, that Jesus knows us and what we need better than that. Do your best and let go of the outcome. Free your mind. The chains around your head and heart are there because of your choice to see things the way you have. No person, no thing, no problem, no hurt, and no situation has power over you until you decide that it's okay for it to. You have to pick your battles wisely.
I'm not Catholic, but for Lent, I'm giving up complaining (I know, don't judge me yet cause I'm aware that that seems sorta unattainable for me). I'm really going to try. Because it's a nasty trait and there's power in positive words. I'm the first to speak them unto others and the last to let them speak to me.
"Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, and events that make you unhappy, sad, and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking." Also, this article: 15 things you should give up to be happy.
"Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.” - Joseph Campbell
I'm trying a healthier perspective. One where I let go of the notion that the world owes me anything, that I'm entitled to good things. But rather, one where I accept the sweet things that Jesus allows to come my way. And I stand firm on the truth of the cross and his resurrection to give me hope in the not-so-sweet things.
She let it go: She let go. She let go. Without a thought or a word, she let go. She let go of the fear. She let go of the judgments. She let go of the confluence of opinions swarming around her head. She let go of the committee of indecision within her. She let go of all the ‘right’ reasons. Wholly and completely, without hesitation or worry, she just let go. She didn't ask anyone for advice. She didn't read a book on how to let go. She didn't search the scriptures. She just let go. She let go of all of the memories that held her back. She let go of all of the anxiety that kept her from moving forward. She let go of the planning and all of the calculations about how to do it just right. She didn't promise to let go. She didn't journal about it. She didn't write the projected date in her Day-Timer. She made no public announcement and put no ad in the paper. She didn't check the weather report or read her daily horoscope. She just let go. She didn't analyze whether she should let go. She didn't call her friends to discuss the matter. She didn't do a five-step Spiritual Mind Treatment. She didn't call the prayer line. She didn't utter one word. She just let go. No one was around when it happened. There was no applause or congratulations. No one thanked her or praised her. No one noticed a thing. Like a leaf falling from a tree, she just let go. There was no effort. There was no struggle. It wasn't good and it wasn't bad. It was what it was, and it is just that. In the space of letting go, she let it all be. A small smile came over her face. A light breeze blew through her. And the sun and the moon shone forevermore… - Ernest Holmes
Thank you, God, that you're good. Thank you that you're patient with us. Thank you for designing us to be resilient. Thank you for the Holy Spirit to guide us when we get sorta lost. Thank you for peace and ease. Thank you for forests and oceans. Thank you for putting semicolons where we put periods. Thank you for the promise of your faithfulness. Thank you for the grace that we can stand on. Thank you for goodness and patience and happier thoughts.
I've accepted that I think a lot, most of the time too much. But I'm also consistently working towards not letting my thoughts dictate my life.
I feel like I post posts like this every other day. thanks for reading anyway. hope you're encouraged. and I hope your week is really, really good for you.
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