Taking Time to Reflect

You didn’t come this far, to only come this far.”– Unknown

I’ve said it many times and will continue to say it. Life. Is. Hard. As children we’re typically protected from it’s harshness and unforgiving roughness. We play, we eat, we sleep. Not much else is happening, at least for the average kid growing up.

I remember mentoring younger people and often hearing them say, “I can’t wait to grow up.” Once they did, many of them wished they could go back and relive their youth without much responsibility. Unfortunately that’s not an option. We must learn to grit and bear life as it comes. Taking the good, bad and ugly parts of it. Hopefully as we’re simultaneously learning, experiencing and growing into who we will ultimately become.

As younger people we often see time as never-ending. Afterall we have our whole lives still to live, but once we get a bit more mature, we begin to see life through a different set of lenses. Lenses that reflect our reality, our struggles and ultimately our natural demise.

It can be a painful reality to face, yet one we must all recognize and eventually accept. Afterall, it’s a part of life. Everyone’s life. To die that is, and what we choose to do with our time is totally up to us.

As a deep thinker by default, I have always been curious about life, the decisions people make and why we make them. I have spent endless hours wondering why people do what they do, including myself. Making poor decisions, productive ones and how we find ourselves in precarious predicaments.

After suffering many painful moments, I have learned a new habit. The habit of reflecting. That is, taking the time to think about my life and consider how I’m currently living and why. Could I be doing something better, am I where I should be and am I with the people/persons I should be with?

Answers that don’t easily come simply because I ask them, but still ones that should be asked or considered. They encourage me (the questions) to pause, wonder and reflect on my life and what it is in that very moment.

It’s not so much about making wrong or right choices, (although that is important as well) but what impulses are running through my brain at the time. In other words, why do I make the choices I make? Is it fear of an unknown outcome, overthinking about what others will think of me or just me being overly cautious? The reasons can be endless and equally paralyzing.

So before I go crazy, and run down a rabbit hole of delirium and paranoia, I take the time to reflect. I go to a quiet place and allow myself to peel back the layers of my current frenzy and allow peace to enter an otherwise chaotic moment. I pray, I mediate, I breath and I often go to the gym, because working out helps me calm down. I say do what works for you, as long as it’s healthy, but please do something.

As I mentioned earlier. Life. Is. Hard. Some say, “Then we die.” I say that is where our best life can begin, but it ultimately depends on us and what we choose to do in that moment.

So what are you doing with your moments? Are you living in fear, taking advantage of an opportunity or making another excuse to remain stagnant? The answer to that question is only you truly know, and only you will live with the outcome, truly.

Take some time today, right now perhaps to reflect on what you are, why you are and what you will do next with the rest of your life. Take some time to reflect. Living your best life depends on it.

Keep Pressing,

Hank G

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