With so many fascinating concerns beckoning us, we can be distracted from the few that should be our focus. We must resist the urge to dabble. With a limited amount of energy, we must make some hard choices and concentrate on our highest priorities.
Not all of the things we have to deal with are equally important, but many of them are important to some degree, and it takes wisdom, courage, and no small amount of discipline to separate the less important from the more important.
Graciousness pays kindly attention to other people. It’s considerate in the literal sense, that is, it “considers” the other person. When we act graciously, we’re saying that we’ve taken thought for someone else. Their needs are important to us.
Most of us mean no harm. We have good intentions. But if our good intentions don’t show up in service, they serve no useful purpose beyond making us feel better about our intentions. So let’s quit making excuses and get busy finding someone to serve.
If we fail to taste life fully, both the bitter and the sweet, then we’re losing much of the experience life was meant to be. So the advice of Thomas Mann is worth considering: “Hold every moment sacred. Give each the weight of thine awareness.”
The captain of a ship may entrust many different duties to the sailors under him, but he is still responsible for what happens to the ship. So let’s be wise enough to delegate some work to others, yet big enough to accept a leader’s responsibility.
When two or more people highly value some goal, they will work together. They may have differences, but they will try to keep those differences from interfering with the shared goal. Each individual will be committed to the good of the group.
We need to get outside of our own lives and learn how life has been experienced by people at different times and places. So read and travel. Visit museums and art galleries. Attend lectures and concerts. Explore “the history of the human spirit.”
If we never leave our comfortable ruts, the surprises that can turn us into wise and joyful people can’t reach us. So real life calls us to come out of our comfort — into a realm where our hearts can be pierced by the beauty of unexpected truth.
If we shy away from play, we probably have a greater need than most to get out and do some playing. Life in this world is serious business, it’s true, but those who’re prepared to deal with it best are those who’re a little mischievous!
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