Martin Pigg

Everywhere Angels

Sat, 14 Apr 2012 20:35:38 -0400

Last week my friend Susan stopped me in the gym to introduce me to Michelle, a woman who was three months and twenty-five pounds away from realizing her dream of becoming a police officer. (Now I could pontificate on the ridiculousness of a healthy 5’6” woman being told that she had to go from 150 pounds to 125 pounds in three months because some training academy official was in love with his/her arbitrary height-weight charts, but that’s a blog post for another day).

Susan said that she was concerned about the fact that Michelle had hit a plateau in her training and that as a result she’d become really negative about her prospects for being accepted into the academy. And as a former bodybuilder, she asked if I had any suggestions that could help her to lose the weight.

Michelle teared up as she told me that becoming a police officer was her dream job. And that she was afraid that she would fail to lose the weight, get kicked out of the academy and end up with nothing. And at that point it was clear to Susan and me that weight was definitely not her biggest challenge.

So we spent some time working to get Michelle to a place where she could begin to believe in herself again. And at one point I even drove home to get a book that I knew would inspire her. Then when I ran into Susan at the gym a week later, she happily reported that Michelle was back on track and headed toward her goal of reporting to the academy at the required weight.

On the way home from the gym that day I thought about how important Susan was to Michelle’s success. And it occurred to me that we’re constantly surrounded by angels like Susan who are ready, at a moment’s notice, to wade into the muck of our fears and worries and pull us out onto the dry land of our hopes and dreams. Sometimes they’re folks we already know. And at other times they’re strangers who wander into our lives for a moment or two and offer a kind word or a positive idea that propels us forward.

So how can you spot your angels?

They’re the folks that say, “I believe in you” when you don’t believe in yourself. They’re the people that say, “You can do it” when you don’t believe that you can. And they’re the ones who say, “Let me show you how I did it” when you’ve lost your way and need a way out.

Exchanging Minutia for Miracles

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 09:36:20 -0500

It seems like we spend so much of our precious time wading through life’s minutia, that we tend to forget about what it means to really live. And unfortunately for most of us, clarity only comes when we’re surrounded by our friends and family for one last breath as we depart this world for the next.

It was Blaise Pascal who said that “All man’s miseries derive from not being able to sit quietly in a room alone.” And yet even with this in mind, we still choose to avoid any opportunity to be alone with our inner voice, the voice that has traveled this journey with us and whose sole purpose is to move us in the direction of creating and living our Best Lives.

It’s a voice that we too often choose to ignore, either because we’re afraid to wander outside of the box…or because we’ve allowed ourselves to succumb to the tribal voices around us that work hard to ensure that we “tow the line.”

But I want you to know that regardless of where you are in your life at this moment, it’s never too late to dream. It’s never too late to say to yourself, “I’m gonna begin again. And this time I will follow my heart.”

So I’d like to offer a simple suggestion: Take ten minutes a day to dream. Give yourself permission to be alone with your inner voice and allow it to move you along the path you were meant to travel when you first arrived in the world. Discover and embrace your unique talents and gifts and your reason for being. And in the process, begin to exchange your minutia for miracles.

Like an artist that begins each painting with broad strokes on a canvass, your inner voice is ready to paint the broad strokes of a life that’s possible when you give yourself permission to listen. And just as the artist completes her masterpiece by adding the fine details, your life will become a masterpiece when you add the fine details of Love, Joy, Gratitude and Kindness to the dream of a life that’s infused with passion and purpose.

So as we move into a new week, I have one question for you:

Are you ready to dream?

Reclaiming Your Light

Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:50:00 -0500

I woke up this morning before sunrise and I lit a candle for inspiration. And I was immediately reminded of my belief that we’re all born into the world with an inextinguishable light inside of us that is there to guide us on our journey through life.

For most of us, our light seems to burn brightest in our early years, when our main purpose in life is to explore and enjoy the world around us. And when we find ourselves surrounded by unconditional love and endless opportunities for adventure.

But then as we begin to assume the expectations of family, friends and the outside world, with their opinions as to how we should best live our lives, our light can begin to flicker. And if we’re not careful, we’ll ignore it until we lose sight of it altogether.

My friend Sarah is a personal trainer at the gym where I work out. And she’s got a story that’s really inspirational. Like a lot of folks, she lived through a bad marriage and suffered with verbal abuse. And as she explained to me one time, she gained a lot of weight because her self-esteem took a nosedive.

But the lesson in Sarah’s story is that through all of the mental and emotional pain, her light never left her. And that when she needed it the most, it still burned brightly enough for her to see it and to make the changes that were necessary to find her purpose for being in the world.

The good news for Sarah, and for all of us, is that our light never leaves us. There’ll be times when it flickers and even dims. But if we have the courage to love ourselves, we’ll find that our light is every bit as bright now as it was when we first came into the world. And we can choose to follow it along the path to our purpose.

Always remember that regardless of where you are in your life right now, you can reclaim your light and live your Best Life.

Carpe Diem!

Closing the Chasm

Fri, 15 Jul 2011 06:51:46 -0400

In the race for a meaningful life, we often find ourselves stuck in a chasm between “our time” and “the right time.” And regardless of our efforts, no amount of self-inflicted pressure is gonna magically transform desire into destiny.

Purpose calls to us from a thousand miles away. And while we may hear it early on, the voice is usually faint. And almost always ignored. But if we commit ourselves to forward movement…and we keep the faith…all will come into focus…at a time and in a place…where all will make sense.

The chasm between “my time” and “the right time” began to close on June 5, 2002, when I discovered the one thing that inspires me above all other things. And in my nine-year journey from “passion discovered” to “purpose revealed” I have come to appreciate and value the difference between “our time” and “the right time.” And my path to a meaningful life has become more clear.

The path to our purpose is lined with the stones of our greatest passion. And each step along the path…every moment spent pursuing our greatest inspiration…brings us one step closer to fulfilling our purpose for being in the world.

So this morning the one thing I’m most curious about is this:

Where are you on the path from passion to purpose?

Are You a Lemonade Farmer?

Thu, 14 Jul 2011 06:23:52 -0400

So how’s your lemonade crop this year?

I ask…because our ability to harvest lemonade is essential for creating and living our Best Lives.

In the creation process, there are times when we set the plough in front of us and confidently push forward…allowing our talents and gifts to drive us toward our reason for being on this planet. And then there are times when the plough bogs down…and we find ourselves farming on faith…dodging “life lemons” and looking for the lemonade.

And it’s in the finding of your lemonade that the transformation begins.

challenges find Solutions. fear finds Courage. and frustration finds Hope.

And with Hope…all things are possible!

So go out today and plant some lemonade. And then watch as your Best Life begins to soar.

How Fast Is Your Star Dancing?

Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:09:59 -0400

(from BeautyArtSoul.com)

My artist-mom created this graphic on her iPad the other day and sent it to me. I immediately uploaded it to my mobile phone to use as my wallpaper. Because it reminded me of Nietzsche’s famous quote:

“One must have chaos in oneself in order to give birth to a dancing star.”

And lately my dancing star has been doing the quickstep! Because in the last year I’ve left the job…sold the house…and started a year-long southwestern migration that is likely to find me living in Santa Fe, New Mexico sometime in the near future. All in the name of pursuing my passion and living my purpose for being in the world.

I’m not sure that it’s possible to move toward purpose without at least a little bit of internal chaos. Because our tribe has done a pretty good job of convincing us that the well-worn path is safer and more secure than the road-less-traveled.

But hopefully when our still, small voice gets tired of being ignored…and grabs a megaphone to scream in our head, “Do what brings you joy,” we’ll have the requisite courage to at least listen to the voice. And then slowly gain the confidence to move along our intended path…the one that results in living a “no regrets” life.

Because I don’t think that it’s enough to go through life and get to our last few moments and breaths on earth…only to find ourselves wishing we’d seen more, been more and done more. That kind of wishing doesn’t honor our unique talents and gifts and our purpose for being in the world.

So as I write this…I’m curious about your dancing star. Is it doing the tango or the waltz? Are you creating and living your Best Life…or are you marking time?

Either way…the choice, as always, is yours to make.

Losing Sleep and Gaining Purpose

Sat, 28 May 2011 05:33:15 -0400

I don’t sleep much these days. My calling won’t let me. Inspired to do more with my time on earth, and infused with a keen sense of life’s finite nature…I move forward in the world with a renewed belief in the power that we all have to make a difference in the world.

But there are times when I say to my calling, “Look you’ve got me out here on an island…twisting and turning by myself…moving in directions that I hadn’t envisioned…and in ways that are not very comfortable.

And my calling says to me, “Keep going.”

In anger and frustration I respond to my calling, “But this isn’t the way it’s supposed to be. Things are supposed to be easier!”

And my calling says, “Says who?”

“Says Me” I cry…”This is my life and I should be able to live it any way that I want to!”

“You can” my calling responds. “All you have to do is ignore me.”

Confused…I ask, “So what will happen then?”

But calling says nothing in response.

I cry out in desperation…”Calling…what happens then?”

And still I hear nothing from my calling.

A few moments later, calling returns:

“Don’t worry” calling says. “I’ll never desert you. For as long as you have breath…you have me. But I wanted you to feel what it feels like when you ignore me. That emptiness. That longing for something bigger than yourself. And the desperation that comes from ignoring who you really are…and ignoring why you’re really here.”

“So when will it get easier?” I ask.

And quietly…calling responds “When you let go.”

Are You a "Winner-in-Waiting?"

Tue, 03 May 2011 07:32:33 -0400

Going through my email inbox recently, I came across a newsletter from one of the better known folks in the personal development movement. The title of his newsletter was “The Difference Between Winners and Losers.”

My reaction to the title was probably the opposite of what the author had hoped for, because I was so disturbed by it that I immediately deleted the newsletter without reading any further. And even though deleting it meant that I might miss an important nugget of truth lodged somewhere in the article, I just couldn’t wrap my heart and my brain around the word “Losers.”

Because in my mind, there are no losers! That’s a word used to write people off, a way to discount the potential that each one of us has for discovering and using our unique talents and gifts to make a positive difference in the world. And it offers no hope of recovery from whatever it is that has prevented us from creating and living our Best Lives to that point.

The truth is that wherever we are in life, even if we believe that things couldn’t get any worse than they are right now, we have the potential to rise above our heartbreaks and setbacks to find our footing and move in the direction of our Best Lives.

So with that said, I believe that we need to embrace a new term: “Winners-in-Waiting.” These are the folks among us who have not yet discovered and embraced their gifts, talents and purpose for being in the world. But as long as they, and we, have the breath to do so, there is always hope.

Carpe Diem!

When All You Have is Belief

Tue, 12 Apr 2011 07:50:39 -0400

In his wonderful book of meditations entitled, “The Book of Awakening,” Mark Nepo quotes poet Kurtis Lamkin:

“Believing is all a child does for a living”

I’ve been thinking about that quote for the past couple of days as I move my life in a new direction. And it occurs to me that as adults, we would do well to get back in touch with the child in us that had no other options but to believe.

Sometimes it feels like belief is our only option: The money’s gone. Or the job is gone. Maybe we just saw our spouse pack a suitcase and leave for good. Or maybe we had to ask him to leave. Maybe we just lost a child. Or maybe the doctor just gave us the bad news.

Whatever we face, belief is an island we can swim to in a storm.

It’s a promise to ourselves that if we just hold on a little longer, the sun will shine again.

And it’s a refuge that we offer the people we love, the ones that may have forgotten their child-like ability to believe.

There are moments when we need to take them by the hand and heart and say, “I love you and I believe in you. And you’ll get through this.”

There will be times when we see only one set of footprints in the sand and know that we’ve been carried. And sometimes, those footprints will be ours.

But that’s what life is about:

Believing in ourselves enough to turn dark clouds into rainbows

And Believing in others until they believe in themselves

Rethinking the High-Wire Act

Thu, 07 Apr 2011 07:14:58 -0400

Recently I watched a documentary film about Philippe Petit, who walked a tightrope between the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 1974. And it occurred to me that sometimes our lives feel like a high-wire act.

Whether it’s money, the kids, our health or some other pressing issue, we try to maintain our balance on a very thin line. Make it to the other side and we can breathe again. Fall off the wire and who knows what could happen next.

But what if we choose instead to view our high-wire act as the path to our Best Lives?

One of my favorite quotes from Wayne Dyer is, “When you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.”

Consider the wire as the path from where you are to where you want to go with your life. And the pole you carry for balance, your belief in your gifts, talents, and purpose for being in the world. So with path established and a belief in ourselves, you’re now ready to take that fist step out onto the wire to begin the journey.

So what’s required for the first step?

Belief: Believe that you have unique gifts, talents and a purpose for being here

Faith: We’re not talking complete faith - more like mustard seed size faith.

Incremental Courage: Begin with a little bit of courage and watch it grow

Maybe you’re thinking to yourself that Philippe Petit had some sense of fearlessness that enabled him to cross a thin wire from one tower to the other. And you’d be wrong. In the film he talked about his fear of falling. But the vision for his life was bigger than his fear. So he took that first step off the ledge and onto the wire with courage, a belief in his abilities, and faith in himself.

Create a bigger vision for yourself. String a wire from where you are to where you want to go. Believe in yourself and know that you arrived in this world with talents, gifts and a purpose. And have just a little bit of faith and courage. Just enough to get you started.

And watch as your life begins to soar.

Laundry Lists and the Meaning of Life

Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:36:42 -0400

This morning I felt pressed for time. I had a deadline looming and a laundry list of things that I needed to do before I could call my day a “success.”

And then my friend Tom called.

Tom’s been living with MS for a while now, and this morning he wanted to tell me about a new treatment regimen that he has been undergoing since receiving the results of his latest MRI.

He began by telling me that he had read a book on the use of bee stings to help treat MS patients. And I could hear the excitement in his voice when he told me that one of his neighbors was a beekeeper.

Tom said that every other day for the past three weeks, his neighbor had come to Tom’s house to apply bees to his arms with the hope that the venom would help relieve some of his symptoms.

We laughed for a moment about the fact that, for our entire lives, we had tried to avoid getting stung by bees. And now here was Tom, intentionally trying to get stung. And not only that, he was doing it thirteen times every other day! When I asked how much longer the treatments would continue before he could hope to see some results, he told me that he had at least a couple of more months to go.

After we finished our conversation, I thought about Tom, a man in his early forties with a wife and three young kids. And it occurred to me that in pursuing the bee sting treatments, he was showing a tremendous amount of courage and hope in a process that many mainline physicians would look at with a certain amount of skepticism.

And yet, every other day the doorbell rings and the woman with the bees steps inside…carrying both the bees and a little bit of hope. Hope that Tom will be around to hear his kids laugh, bandage their wounds when they fall, take pictures of their first homecoming dances, escort them down the aisle, and answer those tough life-questions that only a battle-tested father can answer.

Laundry lists don’t seem to matter very much when the only item on the list is to survive. And when success is measured in breaths and not in tasks accomplished.

“I complained because I had no shoes until I met…”

Thank you, Tom

On this beautiful cloudless, sunny Sunday morning in the...

Sun, 03 Apr 2011 10:02:35 -0400

On this beautiful cloudless, sunny Sunday morning in the Shenandoah Valley, amidst the sound of doves cooing and the clop clop of horse-drawn buggies filled with Mennonite families on their way to church, it was my intention to write a pithy and poignant blog post about the beauty of life.

Then my lovely Jennifer reminded that she needed some “me” time of her own, complete with her buddy Martin and her favorite stuffed pig. I resisted at first, thinking that what I “needed” to do was more important than what she “wanted” me to do. And then it occurred to me that what she wanted me to do was also a part of the beauty of life.

So I guess that pithy and poignant will have to wait until tomorrow. I’ve got a dog to love and a pig to chase. Have a Blessed Sunday friends.

Living Our Best Stories

Sat, 19 Mar 2011 11:18:02 -0400

Recently I completed the manuscript for my first book. It’s the true story of a ten-year period in my life that was filled with amazing adventures, a bit of international intrigue, and more painful experiences than anyone should have to go through in a single lifetime. It’s a “lessons learned” kind of book that I hope will inspire people to create and live their Best Stories (aka their Best Lives).

I had blocked that ten-year period out of my mind for a long time, because it was too painful to think about or deal with on any level. And then three months ago I summoned the courage to write my way through the pain of that old story and the most amazing thing happened…I began to heal.

In the midst of writing my old story, I found myself in an odd place. I didn’t want to continue writing because the memories were so painful. At the same time, I found myself unable to stop writing. So I had to make a decision to quit or continue. I chose to honor the voice inside of me that implored me to continue writing my story. I plodded on, enduring a couple of stress-induced minor illnesses and several short bouts of frustration (how could I have been so stupid to…) to come out on the other side of my old story, ready to create and live my Best Story.

I believe that our past experiences are not random events, but stories that we create and live. And it occurs to me that if we create them, we can also let them go, in favor of creating and living our Best Story. I’m convinced that wherever we are in life, regardless of age, financial condition, past or present circumstances, we can let go of our old stories in favor of creating and living our Best Stories.

For most of us, our Best Story is always a work-in-progress. We move through life…loving, leaving, crying and laughing. Sometimes we’re stopping to smell the roses and at other times, somebody’s hurling lemons at us and we’re desperately looking for the lemonade recipe.

So with that in mind, I’m curious to know if you have ever stopped to think about what you’re telling the world with your story? Do you believe that you’re living your Best Story? Are you willing to let your old story go?

If you want to move in the direction of your Best Story, a good place to begin is with one question and four energies.

First, the question: If money was irrelevant and failure was impossible, what would you do with your life?

If you listen for, trust in and act on the answer to that one question, it will likely guide you in the general direction of your Best Story.

The four energies that we can call on at any point along the journey, to assist us in creating and living our Best Story are Passion, Intention, Gratitude and Grace

•Passion - Doing what inspires us

•Intention - Focusing our energy (thought and action) on our passion

•Gratitude - Expressing gratitude for the journey and for our blessings along the way

•Grace - Living with humility equal to our blessings

Passion starts us down the path to our Best Story. Intention keeps us steady on the path. Gratitude opens the path to attract more blessings along the way. Grace widens the path so that others may join us.

If You're Not Failing, You're Not Trying

Thu, 03 Feb 2011 06:35:30 -0500

I’m not real comfortable with the word “fail.” Mainly because I believe that everything we do in life produces a result, and that what’s most important is what we do with the result.

Setting that aside for a moment, yesterday morning I started thinking about all of the major things I’ve attempted in my life. Or at least the things I’d labeled as “major.” And it occurred to me that in every one of those instances, if achieving the desired outcome was considered a success, they were all abject “failures.”

And in the midst of my reflection, the most amazing and wonderful thing happened: I started laughing. First, because of the fact that none of my major life events had worked out the way that I had originally planned. None of them! And I’m talking about seven or eight things that most of us would consider big deals. The absurdity of it just struck me as funny. And second, because I realized that the important thing was not necessarily the success or “failure” of the event. It was the learning that had taken place.

When I stopped laughing, I asked myself, “so why did it take me twenty-five years of trying and “failing” to get to the point where I can now laugh about past events and learn from them?” And the answer came back to me in the form of a Buddhist proverb:

“When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.”

There it is. Game-set-match. Check please. The answer? At the time I was going through the events I was not present enough to learn from the results. And my attachment to the outcome was too great to allow for clarity. But at 5:17 on a Tuesday morning in February, twenty-five years later, I got it.

And then the voice in my head said something even more profound:

“If you’re not failing, you’re not trying.”

Whatever you want to do in life, go for it! Get in there and mix it up. Produce some results. And if things don’t go exactly the way you planned, step back for a moment and reassess. Consider what you learned from your efforts. And then be grateful for the courage you showed in the attempt and move forward. Because the one thing I know for sure is that in the end, you and the world will be a better place for your efforts.

Carpe Diem

On Choosing Life's Default Position

Tue, 01 Feb 2011 07:14:12 -0500

It’s always amazing to me how simple life really is.

I’ve read tons of books and traveled around the world. I’ve meditated, reflected, and spent a bunch of quality time with myself. And after all of that, I’m sitting in my room this morning thinking about the fact that the key to living a passionate and purpose-filled life comes down to one thing:

Making a choice

Now I’m not discounting the reading, self-awareness and life experiences, because that’s an important part of the deal. But at the end of the day, we must choose to pursue our Best Lives or assume the default position:

Living our lives based on the fears and expectations of others.

I’ve read several books by Carlos Castaneda. And the other day I came across one of his quotes that really resonated with me:

“We either make ourselves happy or miserable. The amount of work is the same.”

There it is! It’s not about the effort. It’s about the choice.

Here’s another one of my favorites (author unknown):

“Faith and fear have something in common. They both ask you to believe in unseen things.”

Once again, choice. So if we’ve got to believe in something unseen, why not choose Faith?

Look, I get that life’s default position is easy. No consciousness required. But if in the end it doesn’t create the Joy, Passion and Purpose of a well-lived life, what’s the point?

We can begin today by making a choice to move in the direction of our Best Lives. And then take a step. It doesn’t have to be a big one. Just forward momentum.

If Faith is required, don’t worry about mountain-moving size. Mustard seed size will do for now.

If Courage is required, don’t worry that you need to start your journey with massive amounts. All you need is incremental courage. Start with a little and watch it grow.

And watch as your life begins to soar.

Carpe Diem

The Beauty of a Well-Lived Life

Sun, 30 Jan 2011 07:12:00 -0500

This morning I attended a memorial service for a dear man and a dear friend. The circumstances of his passing were both tragic and sudden. But the reality of his life was that he created beauty in the lives of everyone he touched. And the memory of that beauty is firmly fixed in the hearts and memories of everyone that knew him.

Jim was motivated by his mission to make the world a better place for everyone. His life and his work set a bar that we should all strive to reach. Because there can be no greater mission for us in life. And as the sadness over his loss fades, it will be replaced by an overwhelming sense that his life on earth mattered.

For me, the message in Jim’s life and in his passing is this:

We should do all that we can to live lives that matter.

For Jim, this meant using his unique talents and gifts to do the work he felt called to do in the world. And like Jim, we are all endowed with unique talents and gifts. And our mission on earth should be to discover, develop and use them to create beauty in the world. To live lives that matter.

As I left the church this afternoon, I saw the faces of so many people who loved Jim. So many lives touched and made better because he was here.

That’s the beauty of a well-lived life.

It lives on.

Thank you, Jim.

Rethinking the High-Wire Act

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 06:13:49 -0500

Recently I watched a documentary film about Philippe Petit, who walked a tightrope between the twin towers of the World Trade Center in 1974. And it occurred to me that sometimes our lives feel like a high-wire act. Whether it’s money, the kids, our health or some other pressing issue, we try to maintain our balance on a very thin line. Make it to the other side and we can breathe again. Fall off the wire and who knows what could happen next.

But what if we choose instead to view our high-wire act as the path to our Best Lives?

One of my favorite quotes from Wayne Dyer is, “When you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.”

Consider the wire as the path from where you are to where you want to go with your life. And the pole you carry for balance, your belief in your gifts, talents, and purpose for being in the world. So with a path established and a belief in yourself, you’re now ready to take that first step out onto the wire to begin the journey.

So what’s required for the first step?

Belief: Believe that you have unique gifts, talents and a purpose for being here

Faith: We’re not talking complete faith - more like mustard seed size faith.

Incremental Courage: Begin with a little bit of courage and watch it grow

And watch as your life begins to soar.

Carpe Diem

Rethinking the High-Wire Act

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 07:37:28 -0500

But what if we choose instead to view our high-wire act as the path to our Best Lives?

One of my favorite quotes from Wayne Dyer is, “When you change the way you look at things the things you look at change.”

So what’s required for the first step?

Belief: Believe that you have unique gifts, talents and a purpose for being here

Faith: We’re not talking complete faith - more like mustard seed size faith.

Incremental Courage: Begin with a little bit of courage and watch it grow

And watch as your life begins to soar.

Carpe Diem

When the Bits and Pieces Come Together

Mon, 24 Jan 2011 07:13:39 -0500

It’s a beautiful thing when the bits and pieces of our lives come together to create purpose. All of the events that we viewed as random, sometimes painful and many times joyful, now begin to coalesce into a life that honors the reason we’re in the world.

Yesterday I was doing some writing and I stopped to consider my purpose for being in the world. Suddenly the floodgates opened and I found myself thinking about many of the events that had occurred in my life, some wonderful and some not. But in each one there was at least a sliver of joy or truth.

It occurs to me that in order for the slivers to become signposts, directing us along the road to our best lives, we have to accept the fact that we have a purpose for being here and that being born into this world was not a random event.

We need to consider the bits and pieces of our lives.

And then be present enough to watch them meld together into a meaningful life.

Carpe Diem

Survivor: America

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 06:59:16 -0500

It’s becoming increasingly clear to me that there are very few universal truths and that for most of our lives we’re just kinda following the tribe and hoping that our lives work out the way we want them to. Social mores derive from our tribal scripts. And the ones that resonate the most with the tribal council (parents, grandparents, etc) become the values we’re expected to accept and live by.

So if we can’t vote the members of the tribal council off the island, can we vote to leave ourselves?

There’s no doubt that we’ve learned valuable information from the tribe. We understand that touching a hot stove is painful. And hopefully we’e been taught the importance of love, respect, courage, etc. But in so many other areas of our lives, really important areas, we’ve accepted the tribe’s default positions on important issues as our own. So when we dare to color outside the lines (take chances the tribal council members aren’t comfortable with) we risk incurring the wrath of the tribe. But in the end, the phrase “no risk no reward” seems accurate.

Author William James said, “It is only by risking ourselves from one hour to another that we live at all.”

That’s the deal! We have to risk, if we want to be true to who we are and honor our purpose for being on this planet. Otherwise, we’re just going along doing the same thing our tribe is doing and expecting different results. And that’s no way to live.

Every one of us has the requisite courage, faith, talents and gifts we need to live out our calling on this earth. We just have to begin by believing in ourselves.

And as far as voting ourselves off the island is concerned, I hear Aruba’s nice this time of year!

Carpe Diem