Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Ideal World? You got off the train too early; it's the next stop


Quick, tell me one on your worthwhile goals.

Here are some of mine:
  • Good teeth (yes, I'm still traumatized by my recent visit)
  • Healthy immune system
  • Mastery of an instrument
  • A well-maintained backyard
  • Strong muscles and flexibility
  • A fierce martial-arts form
  • writing that engages and moves people
  • Close relationships with those I love
And I'll tell you--and annoy you no end because you already know this--that each one requires deliberate, consistent, and thoughtful efforts.

Just the way it is: worthwhile=difficult, meaningless=easy.

Why can't there be a world in which the opposite is true?

8 comments:

Corey Schwartz said...

I've always wanted to be bilingual, but I have pretty much given up on it (unless you count sign language. I am fairly fluent in ASL)

Tana said...

I'm in line with all of your except perhaps I have no future ninja potential (I can barely keep up my jogging routine *sigh*) Also, I aspire to align my goals with the ones God has for me.

Tricia J. O'Brien said...

I think the goal I most want is not a thing but a state of being. I would like to not worry and stress so much but rather be more trusting and relaxed that things will work out somehow. Thanks for helping me realize that by asking your question.

Davin Malasarn said...

My goal is to balance my diet and exercise. I swing from periods of intensely healthy living to instensely unhealthy living, and I'd like to stay somewhere in between. Which stop is that?

Eric said...

A nice list. My primary goal is to be able to write consistently every day, a habit I haven't yet learned fully. Some of the others on your list though are easier than you think; you just have to take the first leap and let gravity do the rest.

Yat-Yee said...

What a bonus! When I wrote this post, I was merely venting about how everything I want, really, really, want, takes so much time and effort. But I am so glad you shared some of your goals. Thanks!

Corey: I learned a little ASL when my babies were small but have since forgotten most of it. Don't give up on another language though.

T. Anne: no ninja potential here either!

Tricia: I love it! A trusting and relaxed state of being. Time to practice what I teach my emotional 7-year old: breathe long and deep and let it go.

Davin:You're on the wrong train, sir. That's in the next galaxy.

Eric: Take the first step and let gravity take over? But won't I just fall over? ;)

MG Higgins said...

I love the title of your post!

I'm wondering if meaningful things can sometimes be easy. I'd like to think they can be. Perhaps it's the high value we (personally and as a society) place on effort. No pain, no gain. I have a feeling this is a belief system and not necessarily based on fact.

Thank you for letting me play the philosophical devil's advocate. Your experience actually reflects my own.

Kelly H-Y said...

I love your list ... and you are so, so right ... they take work!!