A Flash of Clarity!

I had an interesting discussion today- not the content of the discussion itself, rather the thought process it generated for me afterwards.

It would seem in this life we spend a lot of time worrying and wondering what people are thinking about us as individuals, what we’ve done, what we are doing and what we haven’t done. It’s very easy to get caught up pondering it all, (or obsessing about it in reality). It’s also very easy to be told by others, (who are perhaps a bit more comfortable in their own skin, thicker skinned or who simply have that wonderful constitution where they don’t give a rats) not to worry about it. I fantasize about having this constitution at times. It’s not that I want to be unfeeling, I’d just like to step off the wonder/worry wheel sometimes.  The ability to put things into perspective, to rationalize and to let certain things wash over me, are skills I am trying to achieve. I have hope I can achieve this. By no other factors than age and the wisdom and experience of life, I am hopeful I will get there.

What I realized today, is that everyone will always have an opinion about something. People will talk about a given situation, they will make judgments, and they may say they are not, but they are- we all do. It doesn’t matter how good a person you are, it doesn’t matter how much you do or do not achieve someone will always have something to say about it- good, bad or otherwise. You may be on different sides of the planet, your worlds very much apart and still someone may have something to say about a given situation. So here’s the thing, you can’t control what anyone else thinks. All your worry and anguish and wondering will not stop a thought process in someone else’s mind… so why wonder, why worry. It serves absolutely no purpose at all. What is important is what we think of ourselves, our own actions, the things we have and haven’t done- how we feel about that and what we then do to change a situation we aren’t happy with, or to recognize and be thankful of a situation we are happy with.

None of this is rocket science and for many it’s a given, but for me it’s taken a long time to realize what I’ve just discussed. I can’t guarantee I won’t be riding the wonder/worry wheel again but I would like to think that it’s a lot easier to step off than it has been previously!