Life is Complicated

While everyone else is up in arms about what Trump is doing I’m over here thinking about the complexities of life. The ones that make us human not machines.  I’ve had a few conversations recently with friends of my generation who have shared this sentiment, “I thought life was supposed to get easier as we get older”.  Unfortunately it’s not, and this is where I have to remind myself life is complicated.  Otherwise I’d be shouting that line from the movie Empire Records, “Damn the man!”

I feel all of us at some point feel trumped down in life or by life at times. So I’ve come up with some “Damn the man!” reminders.

1-Be kind. Remind yourself, life is complicated.  A friend recently posted this quote, “Be kind, you don’t know what someone else is going through.” This is so true.  So be kind, lend a ear, sometimes we need compassion. Also be kind to yourself.

2- Love nature. I can’t emphasize this one enough. Go for a walk, put your feet in the sand, and embrace the world around you.  As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Live in the ocean, swim in the sea, drink the wild air”.

3- Savor time.  Savor every second like it is the finest morsel of food you have ever devoured. Time can be like a boiling pot of water. If you are waiting for something to come time seems to slow down, but when you are truly living it just flies by…my where has the time gone.

4- Be honest.  Be true with yourself accept your flaws alongside your strengths. No one is perfect, and there is always someone that can do it better. You are your own worst critic.

5-Forgive. Remember we are all on a journey, each with its’ own obstacles. Emerson also once said, “ Life is a journey, not a destination”. The obstacles or road bumps along our journey are what shape and mold us.  The obstacles help us grow not just as individuals, but also as humanity.

Life is very complicated, so garden your relationships. Why? Relationships are something all of us have, but they can be very complex. Sure some relationships are easy, but the good ones, the ones who are with you for a lifetime, those are the complex ones. The ones you fight for and cherish in a way that cannot be defined in words.  This dawned on me as I watched an interview with Jada Pinkett Smith on her relationship with Tupac. She described their relationship as, “It was beyond friendship…the type of relationship we had you only get once in a lifetime”. To help each other in our journeys we must learn to accept the complicated obstacles and help one another for the betterment of all humanity.

“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”- Ralph Waldo Emerson