A street vendor cuts up and displays several fire-red watermelons for passers-by to purchase. You would believe all the watermelons to be as red and sweet. It is not so. You might find a pale-pink tasteless one. Life is as unpredictable. In spite of the premises, you can never be sure of the results. Therefore…. get ready to face, accept and deal with the “color” you are being presented with.
You get up in the morning, you carry out your chores and duties, you do 'stuff' but then, if you muse on it, you may wonder, What for? Sometimes it is not easy to believe that what you do throughout the day is all what life is about. There is an inner stirring, lurking from the recess of your deeper self that makes you never be fully satisfied or totally fulfilled. And again you ask why. You know that you behave the way you should, you don't avoid your responsibilities, you are reasonably good to others. So? Where does this feeling of having missed something come from? Where does the feeling of lacking something else come from? Can you find the answer? Can any of us?
A quote says:"Hope ends when you stop believing". Hope is a wonderful feeling but…are you able to keep it high at all times? Or do you rather tend to give in to a feeling of helplessness, and convince yourself that nothing can be done about a certain situation? It is true that often life makes things difficult or disappointing. But it is just then that you need to resist and allow the feeling of inadequacy to be replaced by the belief that situations can be healed, that problems can be solved. Without such conviction, life becomes a hard task to keep carrying on.
Have you ever wondered if it is peculiar to the human nature to believe what one is told? Further investigation may lead you to wonder if human beings believe what they are told because they are deeply convinced (i.e.it all makes real sense to them) or rather because they allow themselves to get conditioned, as it appears to be the easiest thing to do. In the end, you may either feel like trying to answer such questions or you think that, after all, it's better to continue believing (or 'not' believing) without any further consideration.
When you are facing a 'bad' moment, and you really want to feel better, try to remember all the 'good' moments you have previously enjoyed. It is sad to realize how human beings have the tendency to focus on any unpleasant event that takes place rather that highlight the nice occurrences that also happen in their lives.
Do you do the same? Does this make you feel better? Is complaining or feeling sorry for yourself a smart way to overcome challenges? Only you can say it. Don't forget that, after all, you have the power to decide on how to manage your actions, your feelings and, consequently, your own life.
When you are angry, you are unable to see the other person’s point of view because you don’t listen. You are so wrapped up in your own feelings that you cannot pay attention to what the other is saying. Besides, you can't imagine the outcome of your outburst. This is understandable and forgivable, but only to a certain extent. In fact, also the other’s hurt should not be overlooked. If you don’t want your life to become a ‘monologue', you need to watch yourself and endeavor to realize and accept that, as the others 'exist' just like you, they also have the right to think, behave and be as you do. You expect to be listened to, therefore only by listening, beside talking, and replying accordingly can a beneficial, possibly peaceful dialogue be established.
A possible future might see that people – while living in a virtual world – will be able to assume more identities. In one 'reality' a person can be a brother or a sister, in another a son or a daughter, in another a parent or a cousin… They can choose to be here a doctor and there a lawyer, or a gardener... or anything else! Will this mean that people will lose their own identity, that they might end up not knowing who they really are? A psychiatrist says that it is highly possible. The final, disturbing question: Will human beings reach a point where they prefer to live in a custom-made world? Will they opt for a life with virtual families, friends, jobs? At this point, who will operate in the real world? Will there be a real world anymore?
Sometimes people rearrange their lives in a way that does not fulfill their expectations. They change the old environment for a new one that they believe will be more exciting, rewarding or uplifting. Sometimes they are not disappointed, and realize that they had made the right decision in daring to face the unknown. More often, though, their expectations are not met because the reason for leaving the old road was not the correct one. The most common incorrect reason is the attempt to 'escape' from an unpleasant situation. Escapism, fear, denial, refusal are the starting point that usually lead to discontent and failure. Moving to a new country, city, job or environment simply because one 'couldn't stand' the previous one is not the solution to their problem.
It's intriguing to see how people, starting from common ground, can eventually drift apart. You meet someone and find out you are sharing several interests. You become friends and have wonderful conversations. You believe that your friendship will last forever because it has solid foundations. Then, as time goes by, you start losing contact with your friend. You may have moved to another city or simply decreased the frequency you used to get together. But you are still remembering them as one of your best friends. 'We have so much in common', you still believe. Then, when you happen to get in contact again, you realize that you, now, have nothing in common anymore. If you happen to talk to them again, you realize that what they are talking about means nothing to you. Sad? Yes, to a certain extent. Yet, people move at a different pace, in different directions. This is how life seems to work.
