What Lies Inside You

“What lies behind you and what lies in front of you, pales in comparison to what lies inside of you.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

What a great way to start the day. RWE is one of my favourite philosophers. I cannot remember when I discovered him or even why. I do remember a student of mine telling me more about Emerson than I had ever known. I have read some of his writings but MAN OH MAN is that hard,

What lies behind you….. pales in comparison…. Why? Too many people spend so much time remembering and reliving the past. I try to use the past as a guide for the present and even the future. I do not dwell in the past. Dwell, to live,… Some people I know LIVE for their memories of high school. To be honest, they seem t have peaked in high school.

Living in the past is like trying to drive down the highway by looking in your rear view mirrors. Its OK until you hit a really curvy patch. Then you’ll be in the ditch or worse, driving headlong into oncoming traffic.

What lies in front of you….. pales in comparison. What is meant when you are looking ahead? Honestly, either I am worried about something or am gleefully awaiting something that may or may not happen.

Look to the future with EXPECTATION to be sure. Expect good things to happen and they will. Expect bad things and they will happen as well. I see a lot of people who “hope and pray” things get better and do absolutely nothing to get there, Nothing.

SO let’s take a look at what Mr. Emerson is saying. …pales in comparison to what lies inside of you….

It is a wonderful thing to have a positive mind set but that alone will do you no service. You must always guard your heart, keep negativity at bay, stay positive. But there also needs to be a healthy level of realism. I love the rain. A lot of those I work with hate the rain. Nevertheless our work must be completed outside. And regardless of whether or not you like rain, you can be positive. Realize it is raining and have at ‘er.

What you cultivate inside of you will indeed structure your future. Life throws all sorts of things at you. It is not what happens to you that matters but how you respond to what happens. What is inside of you will pretty much dictate what happens to you. As long as you are working to a worthy end. 

A Butterfly represents the future potential of the caterpillar. A butterfly in October is a sure sign of a positive attitude, it has to get to Mexico before the snow starts flying!

So do this…. Focus on gratitude. Every morning as you wake and your mind is coming back from the subconscious go over a gratitude list. What and who you are grateful for. And really FEEL grateful. Once you do this a few mornings you will approach the day with a really good attitude.

And do this… Ever evening as you are falling asleep go over a gratitude list again. It may be different than your morning list – that doesn’t matter. And again, really FEEL grateful. As you drift off to sleep your subconscious mind will marinate in that feeling of gratitude. When you wake you will find yourself starting o feel grateful even before you start to review your gratitude list. You will be changing one of your thought paradigms. Do this for a month or so and you’ll be amazed at the changes you will see in your life.

Take care of yourself and have a wonderful day.

Matt