CARPE DIEM

I forgot to say “Good Morning” to my husband this morning.

It’s something I like to do. I say “Good Morning” to both my husband and my son. I suppose I was already busying myself with getting my son ready for school…but, I like to give a decided greeting to everyone as we wake and embark upon a new day. It’s an intentional and abbreviated way to convey the message of- “I see you, I acknowledge you, I am happy you are here.”

These are the little choices we thread in to every day that are so easily taken for granted, overlooked, dismissed as not important, seemingly cliché- but it is what weaves the entire fabric of our lives. It is what manifests the things in your life.

Take a deep breath. Look around you- wherever you are. Every inch of every thing that you see before you is part of the fabric that you wove together with every choice you’ve ever made before and up to this moment in time. There may be some holes in your fabric- perhaps the fabric was torn by choices others have made. However, any person in your life that you have allowed to tear holes was also part of a choice you made. Same goes for any areas beautifully embroidered by another.

It is all yours.

Will you wear it? Store it away with moth balls? Air it out? Deconstruct it and refabricate it? Patch it up? Give it away and start a new one…?

If this is too metaphorical for you, we can apply this concept literally to our physical bodies.

Your body is much like a fabric- it is largely a result of choices you make from day to day. Most of us were given the standard issue body at birth, and then our parents chose to nurture its growth, and then we became responsible for it. Much like the world around you (your reality) has much to do with your choices, the world that houses your being- your body- also has much to do with your choices. The circumstances of life around all of us have to do with the choices we make, or allow, in our society.

Many people don’t like this concept, or they diminish its reality. However, if you choose healthful foods daily, and exercise daily- you have a much different result than if the opposite choices are made. It may seem harsh, or viewed as “blaming the victim”, but the simple truth is that most cases of obesity (which is a disease) are simply a summation of choices that were made every day.

The point is- life isn’t really just happening to us. We are the key players in our own lives, and regardless of all the reasoning and psychology behind our choices, mathematically speaking- we are the sum total of many choices made. Physically, spiritually and emotionally.

This is not to confuse choice with control. So many things are beyond our control, but we have choice over how we receive and act upon our own lives.

So, what’s it going to be today? Will you drive through some fast food restaurant- which is really a choice to support factory farming and poor food quality, or stop at a farmer’s market- which supports local farming? Will you take a walk- which is a choice to help your blood circulate well, aiding in detoxification of your body? Will you reach out to someone you care about- which is a choice to not only be kind and compassionate, but is good will that will come back to you?

Good Morning,