The more time I spend with my dad in his later years, and hear newly polished stories of his youth and life past, and at the same time endless stories of suspicion and fear about the present, and finally obsession with ever ache and pain and sick friend enemy and relative no matter how far away, the more I am convinced that the stories we tell ourselves. shaped our understanding of how we perceive our lives. My dad is not alone, he is only an example of all of us, as we all tell ourselves stories about the intentions of others, the importance or unimportance of every event, the meaning of all the foci of our lives. This inner chatter may be the single most critical changeable factor in our daily lives.
Or as Leo Babauta stated, "At the end of the day, the questions we ask ourselves determine the type go people we will become." Questions questions questions - the foundations of the stories we tell ourselves. What kind of father will I be or have I been? What type of husband will I be or have I been? If my marriage is less than I desire or expect, what responsibility and actions will I take to make it strong better and richer? Or will I simply lay blame around like poison on the tip of an arrow? How will I make the world a better place? What value will I provide for my circles of relationships or clients? What character will I bring to the challenges of life that I have no control over? Will I be a giver or a taker? And this can, and does, go on until the end of our days.
Now the tricky part is to ask ourselves these questions, not just feel (i.e. react) our way through life. I don't know about you, but my base reactions are far less than I desire when I step back and use some brain power and forecasting in the process of life. I want my inner chatter to come to the place where it reflects the life I chose to live, rather than the feelings of the moment. I want to shape my life, not only have it shape me. I choose to bring my best self into play each and every day.
Or as Leo Babauta stated, "At the end of the day, the questions we ask ourselves determine the type go people we will become." Questions questions questions - the foundations of the stories we tell ourselves. What kind of father will I be or have I been? What type of husband will I be or have I been? If my marriage is less than I desire or expect, what responsibility and actions will I take to make it strong better and richer? Or will I simply lay blame around like poison on the tip of an arrow? How will I make the world a better place? What value will I provide for my circles of relationships or clients? What character will I bring to the challenges of life that I have no control over? Will I be a giver or a taker? And this can, and does, go on until the end of our days.
Now the tricky part is to ask ourselves these questions, not just feel (i.e. react) our way through life. I don't know about you, but my base reactions are far less than I desire when I step back and use some brain power and forecasting in the process of life. I want my inner chatter to come to the place where it reflects the life I chose to live, rather than the feelings of the moment. I want to shape my life, not only have it shape me. I choose to bring my best self into play each and every day.
